Equestrian Keyblades
by Nanoman94
Summary: The third installment in the Tales of the New Keywielder Saga. When the journey to Xion's fourth Heart fragment takes the heroes to a world of horses, what surprises await? And how do the residents of that world react? Find out! Rated T for mild language and Heartless-Killing. Sequel is "Keys of Falana."
1. Crash Landing

(Author's Notice: You guys voted for this, so here it is: A Kingdom Hearts/My Little Pony crossover. For all you bronys and Pega-sisters out there, no, I have never [willingly] watched an episode of the show. All data and information regarding to equestrians has been obtained off of the wiki. Thank you for understanding, and enjoy. ~Nano)

Chapter 1  
Crash Landing

"Alright, Xion, let's see where the next piece is." I said, invoking upon my magical power to locate another shard. In my mind's eye, I saw a faint dot appear in the distance, the next location. "Computer, analyze the coordinates set by my… brain, and plot the fastest course to the destination." A few beeps from the mainframe signaled that the process was complete.

_"Do you really think that my heart can be fixed?" _Xion wrote.

"Yes, Xion. I really do." I stretched a little, feeling tired. "The ship will take a while to get to the world. Let's get some sleep before that happens." I walked over to the bunk room that I chose, and climbed into one, Xion going to the other bunk. "Goodnight, Xion."

(Hours Later…)

I felt something prodding my shoulder, waking me up. _"We're here." _Xion's pad had written on it as I picked it up. I jumped off of my bunk and landed on the floor, closing the curtain around my bunk to get a little privacy to change my clothes. The same duds for two interplanetary trips seems a little wrong.

I walked out in brown cargo shorts, and my shirt was a dark blue. "We're here already?" I asked. Xion nodded, and pointed to the world below. I saw it to be like many others- blue water and sky, green plains, tall, stony mountains… the only thing different from other worlds was that this one had a gigantic rainbow circling the planet.

"Well, I'll do a short little dream drop, get your heart fragment, seal the world, and we can be off." I said. Sounded like a good plan. Too bad those never actually come to happen. The moon encircling the planet started to turn a little faster. "Wait, what's going on?" I asked, as four stars grew bright, and an enveloping light was starting to coat the moon.

The light affected my ship. We lost power- a dangerous thing in the orbit of a planet. The light must have some sort of electromagnetic effect. "Xion, we're going down, and not in a nice fashion!" I yelled, jumping over to the manual controls. I could still maneuver it slightly, and it had to be enough to dodge the space debris that littered the orbit.

I saw Xion's pad. No words were on it, just an arrow pointing to the right. I looked in that direction and saw a meteor headed straight for us.

"By the Maker, why does it always have to hit _us_?" I said, trying to steer away. The meteor hit the ship, however, since the manual controls did little to help. It punched a hole straight through the middle, cutting my space vessel in two. Xion was in the other part.

I saw the second half drift away as we entered the atmosphere, and I braced myself for impact. The ship skidded across the ground, leaving a large trench dug in the surface of the planet. The last thing I saw before I blacked out was the ship skidding to a halt in a thicket of trees.

(Another character's point of view-from the world I'm in. You guess who, shouldn't be hard.)

"Hmm… I think I just need a little more sulfur…" I said, walking around my home, searching for a jar of the yellow colored dust. "Sulfur, sulfur… ah!" I had found the jar nestled behind a few books about the stuff, and I picked it up using my magic. I placed it next to the bubbling concoction on my desk, when I heard a knock on my door.

"Hey, Twilight, you home?" I heard. Outside my door I could see nothing but a blue- furred face, with violet eyes and a rainbow-colored mane, which was her namesake.

"Rainbow Dash, aren't you supposed to be clearing the sky today?" I asked her, as I opened the door.

"You know I can do that quickly. Ten seconds flat, remember?" She said, strutting into my tree-shaped home. "What are you doing, is more the question." She took one look at the bubbling potion on my desk. "Egghead stuff, huh?"

"No, I'm working on a very potent medicine for the local infirmary. In fact, it's Poison Joke again." I still remembered what it did to my horn, and I shuddered.

"Oh, right. That stuff that made me fly upside-down, it turned Applejack tiny, and it made Pinkie Pie's tongue all floppy. Rarity's hair looked terrible, too. But what did it do to Fluttershy? I can't remember…"

I giggled. "It made her sound like an old Colt, that's what!" We both laughed. "Anyway, Zecora gave me the recipe she used last time, so I should be done soon." I turned my attention back to the potion, ignoring the actions of my friend. Don't worry; she decided to tell me what's going on.

"Hey, Twilight, check this out!" I heard her scream. I accidentally put a few more grains of sulfur in the potion than was listed, and the thing popped, fizzed, and exploded. Not a big one, but the bottle shattered and a small mushroom-cloud appeared on my desk.

"RAINBOW DASH!" I yelled, startling my friend off of her perch near a window. "What did I just say? This is very important work!"

"Sorry. But what's everyone doing down there? It seems like they're all huddled around Pinkie." She said, pointing to the crowd. We decided to head outside to see what's going on.

"Pinkie Pie, what's wrong?" I asked her, and the crazy pony almost ripped my mane off when she grabbed me.

"It's my tail! It won't stop shaking, and it's bigger than every other shake I've ever had!"

"Tail shaking… what does that mean again?" I racked my brain. "Oh, yeah, something's…" I was cut off by the pink-furred girl.

"SOMETHING BIG IS FALLING! FROM OVER THERE!" she grabbed my head, and twisted it around. I looked up, and I did see something big.

It looked like a multicolored meteor of some sort. But, the problem was, it was headed straight for us! "EVERYPONY RUN!" Rainbow screamed, flying away. I ran, Pinkie holding on for dear life on my tail. The meteor flew past overhead, and I saw it more clearly- it was made of metal, and I saw that it was on fire, having hit something.

The strange meteor-thing grazed the top of my house, knocking a few branches down. It hopped and skidded outside of Ponyville, heading straight for the Everfree forest. I stood up, looking at the giant skid-mark in the ground.

"Hahh… Is Ev'rypony alright?" I heard, recognizing the voice as my friend Applejack.

"I'm fine, but I can't say the same for my hair…" That voice must be Rarity. I walked out, Pinkie following me. Those two, as well as Rainbow Dash, were sitting together, looking at the crater.

"What do 'yall suppose that thing there was?" Applejack asked.

"I think it was some kind of Super Comet!" Rainbow said.

I proposed my opinion. "Girls, I saw it up close as it hit my house. It was made of metal, and looked badly damaged. I think it was a spacecraft of some sort, and it got hit or something." I said. It went against anything I've read on the subject, but it was the safest assumption from what I saw.

"Well, whatever it is, we need to find it before it can hurt anypony. Who knows what that thing'll do." Applejack said. The rest of us nodded in agreement, and we walked down the trench, Rainbow grabbing Fluttershy along the way.

"B-But what if it wants to hurt us..?" She stuttered.

"Then I'll fight it off, you scaredy-pony." Rainbow said.

I hushed them up. "We'll see what it is when we get to it, alright, girls?" I walked forward, leading the six of us into the forest.


	2. Keyblade's Magic

Chapter 2  
Keyblade's Magic

"Ugh… my head…" I groaned, finally regaining consciousness. The wreckage of my gummi ship lay around me, as I still remained in the pilot's chair. I slapped the emergency release buckle, and I fell forward due to gravity. I landed on a bunk in the sleeping area, knocking down a few of Xion's books that somehow survived the fall.

"Not as elegant as I expected, but effective none the less." I muttered, standing up. That's when I noticed something _really _off. I was shorter than I remember, my head at around shoulder height normally.

"What's going on?" I said, walking forward. Odd moment number two- I was walking on all fours, I could feel as much. "What in the living hell?" I said, looking down. Instead of my body, I found brown fur. I think I screamed like a girl for about ten seconds.

"Okay, Zack, calm down. What's wrong with you now?" I asked myself. I examined my own body. The brown fur was accompanied by a darker brown… mane, and tail. Instead of hands or feet, I had hooves. Finally, the creepiest thing was that I had a picture of my Keyblade, in bow form, on my… side? No, on horses I think it's called a flank.

"Alright, so I'm a horse now. Somehow. Why and how did I end up like this?" I noticed the cover of one of Xion's books. It said _Keyblades for Dummies _on the cover. She must have gotten it from Yen-Sid.

"I'm a dummy right now, so here goes…" It was tough opening the book with hooves, but I managed to do so. I flipped the pages with my mouth, controlling that easier than my new front feet. I flipped to the chapter titled 'Transformations,' skipping to the subchapter 'New Worlds.'

_When visiting a world, it is crucial for a Knight of the Key to know that he or she can change form, involuntarily. To keep the fact that you are from a different world a secret, your Keyblade will transform your physical appearance into that of the native sentient life on the world. Do not worry, the effect is only active while you are on the world, and you will return to your normal form once you leave._

Good to know. However, there was a little more. _Given time and patience, a true Keyblade Master can learn to override this instinct of the Key, and retain their original form. _So at least I know I could learn to have this NOT happen.

I also knew that the main sentient life on this world must be horses, since I am one now. But, how will I use my Keyblade? It's not like I can pull a bowstring or slice twin swords. I'll have to avoid combat for a while.

I decided to leave the wreckage of my ship. Staying there was not getting me anywhere, and Xion and her Heart Fragment are both on this world somewhere. Xion must look like this as well. I trekked through the forest I crashed in, looking for some kind of town or village, if horses had those here.

(Several hours later)

I hate being lost. Have I ever told you that? My… hooves hurt, and I could barely walk. That's when I spotted it. someone had hollowed out a large tree, and placed a door in it, making a home. I walked up to it, and knocked. I could see a storm overhead, and I didn't want to be alone, lost, and wet.

"Now, who is this, I wonder? Could it be somepony who wishes to stay clear of thunder?" I heard from inside, a thick, African accent. The door opened, and I saw a zebra inside. So they were horses. She wore gold circlets around her neck and right foreleg.

"Umm, yes, do you mind if I could stay here until the storm passes?" I asked cautiously.

"How could I refuse such a desperate unicorn colt? It would be a shame if you were hit by a lightning bolt." Two things I got from that. One, I'm apparently a unicorn; I couldn't see the horn earlier. Two, this woman apparently speaks only in rhyme. Marvelous.

"Thank you. My name is Zack, might I ask yours?" I said, stepping inside. I saw various masks on the walls of her home, and a large cauldron in the center.

"Zecora is my name, my friend. It shall be so until I reach my end."

"Let's hope that day is far off, right?" I said, receiving a chuckle from her. "Tell me, where can I find the nearest town? I've been lost for days." I lied, to try to get a little more help from her.

"The closest town from here is Ponyville. You can just see it from over that hill." She said, lifting up a hoof and pointing out her window. "However, a large tree has fallen on the path to block. It was the courtesy of that falling space rock."

Yeah, that was my ship. Well, I couldn't say that. "Yeah, I saw it too. But, I'm a little tired—this is the first real shelter I've been in for a while. I'd like to lie down."

"I have a guest bed down the stairs, which you can find over there." She pointed to a small trapdoor in the floor of her home.

"Thanks…" I said, headed there.

(Twilight's point of view. No, not the glittering vampires.)

"This is the thing that fell?" Rarity said. "It looks like it has seen better days." The spaceship, as I could tell from up close, was indeed badly damaged.

"Well, this thing isn't exploring itself!" Rainbow said. She flew towards it, trying to find an entrance. Her way in was a large hole halfway up.

As I was climbing it, I looked down. "Fluttershy, Rarity, are you coming in?" I asked.

"Are you kidding? I could chip a hoof." Rarity replied. "Besides, someone has to keep Fluttershy calm. She's not moving." Indeed, my yellow friend had been so scared of the ship that she stuck her head in the ground like an ostrich.

"Fine, be that way. Come on, girls, let's get in there." When I finally reached the top, I had to pull Pinkie up as well. Applejack was waiting for us, and Rainbow had apparently gone inside.

"You girls have to see this!" She called out. Walking in, I saw some sort of chair, one that was spinning up by the ceiling.

"Now, what kind of pony would put a dang chair on the ceiling?" Applejack asked.

"Ooh! Ooh! I know, maybe they're upside-down ponies!" Pinkie said. We all kind of ignored that.

"Or maybe the chair isn't on the ceiling, the ship just landed upside down." I said matter-of-factly. I trotted over to an open doorway. "Hey, look in here, it's a sleeping area!"

"Well I'll be darned. This here is a spaceship!" Applejack said.

"Well, of course it is! I want to see how fast it can go." Rainbow proclaimed.

"It would have to work first, dummy. But look at these books, they have such weird titles."

"Ugh, egghead stuff… I'm out of here." Rainbow flew off, while Pinkie hopped around the ship. Applejack decided to go in the kitchen, determined to find 'space apples'. I glanced more at the novels in front of me.

"_Gulliver's Travels… Grimm's Fairy Tales… The Hunger Games… _Hang on," I said, passing through the books with my magic. "_Keyblades for Dummies? _What's a Keyblade?" I asked myself, paging through it. I didn't know what I was involving myself in right then. But in the future, I would come to regret it.

(A/N: and there we go. I'm kind of going through this fast so I can get it done. As for those of you who are waiting for my Pokémon story to resume…. YOU MUST WAIT! MWAHAHAHAHAHA- *cough, hack* I really need to work on that… ~Nano)


	3. Meeting

Chapter 3  
Meeting

"There's nothing here! I was expecting at least ONE alien. ONE!" Rainbow shouted. The storm overhead had passed, the six of us taking refuge in the crashed ship. I spent my time reading the strange books I found. Most of them were stories, tales about a creature called a 'human'. The other, though, _Keyblades for Dummies_, seemed to be some sort of manual. Although, I have no idea what a "Keyblade" is, so I'll crack it open when I get home.

"Alright ya'll, the storm's passed. Let's all head on back to Ponyville." Applejack said. Fluttershy seemed very enthusiastic about the idea, as I've never seen her fly quite that fast. Rarity was the slowest coming down ("but what if I chip a hoof?"), leaving me to stay next to Fluttershy while the others helped her out.

However, the yellow Pegasus had noticed something in the bushes. "W-What is that?" She quietly screamed.

"I'm not sure. Let's check it out; it might only be a small, furry animal, like the ones you take care of." I said, walking towards the rustling. The bush shook a little more violently, and a small, black head popped out.

"What is it?" Fluttershy asked. The creature flopped out of the bushes, revealing a small frame, and big, yellow eyes. Its entire body, including its antennae, was black. "Whatever it is, it's so cute!" She said, walking up to it.

"I'm not sure that's a good idea, Fluttershy…"

"Oh, hush." She said, turning to the creature. "She's just saying that because we don't know what you are, little guy! Could you please tell me what you are- I mean, if you don't terribly mind…" By this time, our four friends joined us.

"What in tarnation is that thing?" Applejack said.

"OOH! IT'S A PUPPY!" Pinkie said… I'll just move on to the next comment, by Rainbow.

"It looks kinda cool, if you ask me."

Rarity was the last to comment. "If I look at it… that might just be what my new design needs! Black, with just a hint of yellow, yes…" She started to mumble to herself about her dresses. However, the creature did do something- it opened its mouth to reveal large, jagged black teeth. It then tried to chomp down on Fluttershy's leg.

"But I didn't want to hurt you!" She said, jumping back. The small creature gave out a howl, one that sent chills down my spine.

I looked around, and more of them appeared, surrounding us. They were in the trees, too, blocking access to the sky. "We're surrounded!" I yelled.

Fluttershy actually screamed for once in her life. "SOMEPONY HELP!"

(BACK. TO. MY POINT OF VIEW!)

I woke up in Zecora's spare bed. I headed upstairs, smelling something delicious.

"I hope you had a good rest. I've made something to eat; want to test?" she said, placing a plate on her table. It held a small bowl of greens, tossed in an odd dressing I've never seen before.

"Sure, I'm as hungry as can be." I said, taking a nibble. The dressing reminded me of Italian Dressing from back on Earth, so I happily gobbled it down.

"I'm glad you enjoy it so. It is a fine mix, no?" My hostess said.

"Yeah, thanks, Zecora." However, right about there…

"Somepony Help!" I heard, way off in the distance. It came from the direction I came from, towards my ship.

"Sorry, Zecora, but I have to go. I can't leave anyone in trouble, especially if the meteor fell so close to here." I walked towards her door, opening it to let myself out.

"Then go in your noble quest. But, be sure to come back sometime and rest." I nodded in return, and ran through the woods. I headed toward the screaming, and I found myself looking at the clearing my ship created when it crashed. I saw six horses surrounded by a horde of shadow Heartless.

"Alright, I'm not sure how, but…" I summoned my Keyblade, in bow form. I caught it in my mouth, and the two curves of the bow were still sharp, despite not being in blade form. I'll have to improvise.

I charged into the clearing, swiping my head back and forth to cut away at the Heartless. One by one they fell as I ran through them.

"Who's that?" I heard the purple one in the group say. I had finished taking out the Heartless by the time the next one responded. Easier than I thought.

"I don't know, but he saved our lives." The white one said. She walked up to me as I banished my bow back to where the Keyblade comes from. "My name is Rarity, and I must thank you for saving us."

"My name's Applejack. Thanks, partner." The orange one said.

The pink one jumped around me, in circles, and cried out, "I'm Pinkie Pie! I know, let's get you to Ponyville so we can throw you a party!"

"I'm Rainbow Dash, and this is Fluttershy." The blue one said, grabbing the yellow one.

The purple Equestrian was last to introduce herself. "I'm Twilight Sparkle. Where did you learn that kind of magic?" She asked. "I mean, with the weird blade-thing you had."

"It's nice to meet you all. My name's Zack. As for saving you, no thanks is necessary; it's just my job." I wasn't lying- killing Heartless had kind of become that.

"As humble as he is strong, what a perfect gentleman." Rarity said.

"I'd like to know how you got that blade thing too, it was awesome!" Rainbow said.

"Well, it's not magic, or anything like that. I actually can't use magic at all." I said, receiving a shocked look from the group.

"But ALL unicorns can use magic, right?" Pinkie said.

"Yeah, they can. I should know, I've only studied my whole life." Twilight responded.

"It's not magic, it's a Keyblade. It's a part of me; I don't need magic to use it." they looked confused, so I added, "Here, take me to Ponyville, and I'll explain on the way."

(NOTE OF NANOMAN: well, boring intros are over. Now, the questions! Will I reveal I'm an alien? Will the heartless be stopped? And what in the world happened to Xion? Stay tuned! ~Nano)


	4. The Crystal Empire

Chapter 4  
The Crystal Empire

I was running through the snow. Large drifts had covered the half of the ship I crashed in, preventing my entry. For some strange reason, I was a pony- one that was jet-black in color, with an ice blue mane. The insignia of Nobodies was on my flank, defining who I am. I was still able to summon my Keyblade, Two Become One, but I had to fight off the Heartless that attacked me by swinging it with my mouth.

I was lost, hungry, and tired. Night was fast approaching, and I could tell I did not want to be caught outside after dark. Nothing told me so, but I had a feeling that it was a bad idea. I could see two pillars in the distance, both made of a red rock. They were the only non-white thing in sight, so I headed towards them.

I tripped, and fell in the snow. The constant Heartless battles, the running, and the lack of food had taken their toll on me. I couldn't move, I couldn't stand. I barely had enough energy to close my eyes…

(Hours Later)

My eyes fluttered open, to reveal a different scene. I was laying in a hospital bed, still in my equestrian form, and outside the window I could see a lush, green prairie outside of a town. Odd thing was, everything was made out of a kind of crystal. "Oh, you're finally awake!" A voice said to me. I turned my head, to see an older horse with a doctor's cap on.

"I was so worried when Shining Armor brought you in here, all tired and worn as you were." He walked over to me, and looked me over. "Well, first thing's first. I'm Doctor Hooves. And you would be..?" His question hung out in the air.

I couldn't answer him since I couldn't talk at all. He just stood there, staring at me. "Well, I'm sure you have a reason to keep quiet…" He said, walking over to a table not far off. He called out into a crystal horn, connected to a pipe the led to the ceiling.

"Shining Armor, the mare you rescued has awoken. I think it's proper for her to meet you." He said, followed by loud foot (hoof?) steps upstairs. I sat up on my haunches, trying to stretch. A minute later a white colt appeared, a unicorn. A shield with twin swords crossed behind it was emblazoned on his flank.

"You are awake! That's such a relief." He said, walking up to me. "I'm Shining Armor, and I was worried about you. I couldn't just let you freeze to death out there."

I stayed silent, like usual. I needed some paper in order to communicate. However, how was I supposed to tell them that? I made motions with my, well, hooves, trying to mean that I can't talk. I motioned an "X" over my throat.

"Someone… wants you dead?" He asked. I shook my head. I made a motion about something coming out of my mouth, and I meant sound. I then added the "X" again.

"You feel sick, right?" He asked. "Why can't you just tell me?" I slapped my face with my hoof. I made the motion from my mouth again, but then cupped one hoof to my ear, if I was trying to listen to something. Then the "X" came along again.

"You… can't speak?" He asked. I nodded my head, smiling. Damn, it's hard being mute. "Well, how do you usually communicate, then? Oh, wait, you can't tell me… can you write?" I nodded.

"Alright, one sec…" he said, grabbing a roll of paper and a quill. I grabbed the quill in my mouth to write. It was awkward at first, but I got the hang of it quickly.

_"My name is Xion, and I'm grateful that you saved me, Shining Armor. Could you tell me where I am?" _Was what I wrote. I showed it to him afterwards.

"Well, Xion, it was no problem; many ponies get caught up in the storms. As for where you are, you're in the Crystal Empire."

_"Thanks. I feel fine now; could I walk around and stretch my legs?" _I asked.

"Sure, I'll give you a tour of the castle." Castle? I hadn't known I was in one of those. And was this colt the king? Either way, he led me out of the hospital room with a smile.

"…and here's where you'll be staying, if you choose to live with us." He said, gesturing to the last room. That tour lasted several hours. However, I knew I couldn't stay here. I had to find Zack and my heart fragment.

_"I'm sorry, Shining Armor, but I can't stay. I'm looking for an important friend of mine." _I wrote. Earlier in the tour, I noticed unicorns using basic levitation magic on other items. Now that I knew that, I used my own magic to help me walk and "Talk."

"Is there any way I can help? I could send out a search party, or we could contact other towns and get information." I shook my head. However, before he could have responded, a guard ran up to us. He was beaten and battered, and I could tell a fight was going on.

"Shining Armor!" He paused to take a few breaths. "There are… these creatures… black, and ruthless… we can't take them all!" He finished, collapsing.

Shining Armor took off like a rocket, myself close behind. I could tell the wounds were from Heartless claws. I summoned my Keyblade, using magic to make it float beside me. Shining Armor stopped at a window, looking down below. A swarm of Heartless was attacking the town, and the soldiers were not handling things well.

"We'll never get there in time!" He said. I had other plans. I was in debt to him for saving my life, so I decided to help the people he ruled over to pay him back. I jumped through the window, shattering it and falling to the ground below. I chucked my Keyblade forward, stabbing it into a larger heartless, aptly named the Large Body. As I fell down, I grabbed the hilt of my blade with my mouth, swinging off of it and landing safely in the courtyard.

The Heartless diverted their attention to me. All of them. They knew a Keyblade wielder was in their midst, and they wanted her powerful heart by instinct. Too bad I didn't have one to give them. I swung my blade out at them, making a circle of death around me. The stupid creatures ran into my blade, effectively killing themselves.

That's when the big one came. A Morning Star. This Heartless was large, round and green, with yellow pikes covering its body and head. It walked around on two, almost non-visible legs, but that wasn't what I was worried about. It ejected it arms from inside its body, revealing two large, yellow maces. One of them swung at me, causing me to jump up in the air.

I landed on top of the creature, plunging my blade into its neck. I don't care who you are, if that happens, you die. The Heartless vanished into smoke and the others, who realized their leader was killed, warped away.

"That was amazing!" Shining Armor said to me later. I was inside my room in the castle, since I decided to take him up on his offer. "I mean, what weapon did you use to kill them so easily?"

_"My Keyblade. However, no, I can't let you hold it, and no, I can't get more." _I wrote. I then had to spend the rest of the day explaining to him what a Keyblade was. I just hope that he can get me the location of the other half of the wrecked ship…

(A/N: okay, I lied. There was ONE more into chapter. See you next time! ~Nano)


	5. Ponyville

Chapter 5  
Ponyville

I had accompanied Twilight and her friends to her home, while explaining to them how I was able to defeat the Heartless. "I'm a Keyblade Knight," I began, as we exited the clearing.

"And just what's a Key-blade? Sounds weird." Rainbow said.

"I've never read anything on the subject, either." Twilight added.

"It's a physical manifestation of the light that dwells inside my heart." I said. Plain and simple, the textbook definition of a Keyblade, almost to the letter.

"Uh, it would be mighty kind of ya to repeat that in... English, please." Applejack said.

"It's a weapon I can summon to my side whenever I need it." I said. Still more odd looks from the six ponies. "Maybe I'll just show you…" I said, summoning my bow. I caught it in my mouth as before, both sides showing off their sharp edges.

"I have to admit, that's really cool." Rainbow said.

"And you just go around helpin' other ponies? That's mighty kind of ya." Applejack said.

Meanwhile, the white one… Rarity, right? She had a different opinion. "Oh, just look at it! How it shines in the light, and how brilliant its color is! It's simply marvelous!" she said, liking how my normal bow looked. I tilted it a little to the side, letting sunlight flash off of its golden surface.

I banished my blade. "I guess it is. And yes, I go around and defeat the Heartless so that they don't steal other people's hearts."

"That's the second time you mentioned hearts. I have a feeling you don't mean our physical ones." Twilight said, skepticism in her eyes.

"I don't." I said flatly. We had reached the edge of the forest by now, Ponyville in sight.

"T-Then what do you mean?" Fluttershy said.

"What's the word you would use…" I thought for a second. "I guess 'soul' is a good comparison. But it's a little more than that. A soul is the spiritual essence of a person. Meanwhile, a heart has the personality, the memories, and the strength of the one it belonged to." I finished.

"What I don't understand is why you hold that Blade-thingy in your mouth, when unicorns can make it hover near them!" Pinkie Pie said, bouncing along happily.

"I'd like to know why as well." Twilight said. This girl's not getting off my back, huh?

"Uhh…" Well, a little truth, not the whole truth, is good here. "I was never able to use magic. I guess I'm a special case." I said. Hey, I'm not lying am I? I'm the only Keyblade wielder who can't use magic, at least that I know of. Xion doesn't have a heart, but she can still use it.

"A unicorn that can't use magic? Oh, darling, that simply is dreadful, I couldn't imagine a life where I couldn't use my talents!" Rarity said.

"Same here, since my special talent IS magic." Twilight said, obviously suspicious of me. She didn't press the questions she must have had, though. "Anyway, I'm guessing you don't have a place to stay, and it is getting late."

"Ooh! Ooh! He can stay with me and Gummy!" Pinkie said. I had no idea who this 'Gummy' is, but due to the looks on the other's faces, I didn't want to know.

"I'm fine, really; I'm used to sleeping outdoors." I said. I camped back on Earth often, and I did have to sleep out once or twice on my journeys. Also, I really didn't want to intrude upon their hospitality.

"Well, you're welcome to stay with any of us if you change your mind, right girls?" Twilight asked them. Most said yes, but Rainbow shook her head.

"You seem to have forgotten that I live on a cloud, Twilight. He's a unicorn, he can't exactly stand on those like a Pegasus can."

I thought for a second, and asked, "Well, if you're all okay… I think I'll stay with Twilight; her special talent is magic, right? Maybe she can figure out why I can't use the stuff." Also, there was her rising suspicion; no doubt she'd ask me questions sooner or later, and I'd like to answer them in as much privacy as possible, to help keep my otherworldly origin a secret.

"Well, I'd love to have you stay with me, at least until you can find your own lodging." Twilight said. We called out goodbye to all of her friends, and walked into the tree-library she said was her home. I looked up at the singed branches at the top, reminding myself to apologize about that later.

"Twilight, you're back!" I heard a small voice say. It turned out to be a juvenile dragon, mainly purple with green spikes along his back and head. He barely came up to my shoulder. "How'd it go? Did you find the meteorite? Did it have gems in it?"

"Yes, Spike, we found it. Everything went well, especially since it wasn't a meteor at all; it was a spaceship!" The little dragon seemed surprised. "Also, this colt saved everyone's lives from these weird monsters… Heartless, I think he called them." She said, gesturing to me.

"It's true. Pleasure to meet you, Spike, is it? I'm Zack." I said, holding out a hoof in greeting. The dragon shook it with his hand.

"So, Zack was just going to ask me for a magic lesson, right?" Twilight said.

I nodded. "And I'm sure you have questions about the Keyblade." I said. She led me into a smaller room, and closed the door. Spike apparently wouldn't be hearing this either.

"Alright, I have to know; how do you know so much about those monsters? And how did you find the crash site?" she asked, first thing.

"Good questions. To the first, I wasn't lying. I fight them for a living; it's my job, I should know about them more than most people. I have a book on the creatures, a bestiary of sorts. To the second, it's my ship." My latter statement made her eyes widen in shock.

"Your ship? You mean, as in, your spaceship?"

"Yep. I guess to you, I'm an alien." I said out loud. I had to keep my identity a secret as much as I could, but I could tell that Twilight wasn't going to leave me alone until I did tell her this.

"So there are ponies on other worlds! I have to tell the princess…" It seemed I was more surprised that she wasn't surprised. I grabbed her before she could get out of the room.

"No, don't. Don't tell anyone." I said. She gave me a confused look. "It's going against one of the interstellar rules just by telling you this; you don't reveal to others you're from another world. I only told you because you weren't going to leave me alone until I did tell you, and I wanted as few people possible to hear."

"…I understand. However, were you serious about magic? You… can't use any at all?" I simply nodded. "Well, then I guess I can teach you. I mean, a unicorn who can't use magic is kind of unheard of here. We'll start right now, alright?"

The days went by here in Ponyville. Many of them boring, but others rather eventful. Every day, Twilight tried her best to teach me basic magic, until I had at least mastered levitation and a basic version of a healing spell. Now, I could fight with my Keyblade easier, and heal without the need of Xion's scarce potions.

Speaking of Xion, I still haven't asked anyone if they found the other half of my ship… I approached Twilight, intending to ask her if she could find out about it. However, when I was about to ask, Applejack burst into the room from the main entrance, covered in wounds and mud.

"Zack, y'know those Heartless critters of yours?" she asked quickly.

"Yeah, what of them?" I asked, knowing the answer.

"They're attacking Sweet Apple Acres! And there's a big one, too!" I rushed out of the house, summoning my bow and making it hover next to me. When we arrived, I saw that a swarm was indeed attacking the farm. Mostly shadows, a few soldiers and armored knights here and there. However, what got to me was the heartless leading them.

It was a large, black form, with a heart cut out of its chest. It looked to be a little larger than a human, but with blue horns coming off of its head. Its eyes, unlike most Heartless, were blue. Finally, it had two wings and carried a wicked-looking blue blade, which it was using to fell apple trees in one swipe.

"What is that thing?" Twilight exclaimed.

"A swarm, led by an Invisible. Tell everyone to get as far away from Sweet Apple Acres as possible, this is going to get messy!" I yelled, running towards the fight. I had to help, in return for their kindness. However, as I charged, I had doubts that I could prevail on my own…

(NOTICE FROM NANOMAN: Greetings, Programs! *Ahem*, now, I'm a little scarce on ideas for the next few chapters. Given with what I've set up, could any fans of the show please pm me ideas? I got nothing! ~Nano)


	6. Friendship

**Chapter 6**

Friendship

"Come here, Heartless scum!" I shouted, rushing the crowd of dark monsters. My Keyblade was in dual blade form, each one hovering alongside me. The Heartless definitely abandoned their previous targets, the apple family, to set their sights on a Keyblade Knight.

"Attack!" I heard a voice call, dark and foreboding. I realized it belonged to the Invisible; but, Heartless couldn't talk, right? However, the others obeyed, and came at me as a group. I whipped my blades about me, aiming for throats and arms of my foes.

The creatures faded into darkness, one by one. However, I knew there were too many for me. For every one I cut down, another materialized to take its place. As I fought, I saw Applejack getting her family away from the combat zone.

"But sis, what about Zack?" I heard Applebloom, the youngest, exclaim.

Applejack responded, "He's fought these things before, now get outta here before you're hurt!"

I twirled my blades around my body as I jumped, cutting through a horde of them. They were replaced as soon as I landed. The invisible hovered above the battleground, staying out of reach.

"Zack, heads up!" I heard a familiar voice say. It was Twilight, and she came running into the battle with her magic, hitting a Heartless with a fatal blow to jump in next to me.

"What are you doing here?" I said, parrying an Armored Knight's blade.

"Saving your hide!" Rainbow said from above, fearlessly kicking a Soldier in its face, causing it to disappear. Applejack came running in next, using her experience and power to kick down hordes of the creatures.

I heard an explosion not too far off. "What in the heck was that?" I asked, as several Heartless nearby exploded in confetti.

"That's just Pinkie Pie and her party cannon." Twilight said, using magic to drop a large rock on a few unfortunate creatures.

A few minutes later, and even my new help didn't cut too big a hole in the horde. That's when I noticed it. Whenever we killed a Heartless, the invisible would snap his fingers, and another would spawn. He was summoning them, that's why he wasn't fighting!

"Twilight, this may sound insane, but I need you to hurl me at the big one."

"You are insane."

"Just do it!" I yelled. She complied, and picked me up using her levitation powers. I was flung into the air, my bow coming together into its, well, bow form. It sliced through the invisible, and my mouth caught the hilt of its sword, and I used that to slash through the thing's body until it didn't move.

"That. Was. AWESOME!" Rainbow said after the rest of the monsters were cleared out. "I mean, we just kicked tail back there!" She flew above us, performing stunts for us to witness.

"I couldn't have beaten them without your help, girls. I have to admit; I think you may have saved my life back there.". I said.

"You saved Sweet Apple Acres and my family by distracting them. You're a hero in my book!" Applejack said.

"We should have a party to celebrate!" Pinkie said. We all nodded in agreement.

"It'll be nice to get to know my new friends a little better.". I said, receiving smiles in return.

"Well come on then! Ponyville isn't-" Rainbow started. However, she started to choke, and landed.

"Are you okay?" Twilight asked. That's when Rainbow... Barfed up a small, glowing orb of light.

It spoke, too. "I will return for my revenge!" it said before flying off into the sky.

"Umm..." everyone unanimously said.

"What? That was just a past guy I beat in a fight.". Rainbow said, recieving blank stares. "Oh, shut up and let's party."

"PARTY!" Pinkie shouted. Heh, I could get used to this crowd. However, my head still thought about Xion, and I was determined to find her. I'll ask my new friends for help in the morning; no sense in ruining a perfectly good party; now is there?

(A/N: so, my first chapter written and uploaded on an iPod. Huh. Anyways, I'm on vacation right now, so don't expect many updates; I'm pretty sure this is the only free wifi for miles. Also, for those of you who got the reference by Rainbow at the end, you have excellent taste in Internet television. Until next time, -Nano)


	7. A Royal Invitation

**Chapter 7**

A Royal Invitation

"Twilight, are you sure this is safe?" I asked the purple mare sitting across from me.

"Why wouldn't it be? It's only a dandelion sandwich." she replied, happily munching on an identical dish.

We were the only ones in earshot, so I told her, "Where I come from, we feed this to our food, not ourselves." I received a shocked expression from my unicorn friend.

"Wait... Does that mean you eat... Animals?"

"Yeah. I already told you before, I'm not a colt where I'm from. I'm a human." Carefully, I still took a bite of the salad on bread, and found it to not taste too bad. Not as good as a rack of pork ribs, mind you, but good in its own right. If you're wondering what I ate in the past few days before this meal, I was rationing what little supplies i could salvage from my ship, with Twilight's help.

"Okay... Well, just don't do it here. If you share a colt form, then you probably have the digestive system of one. And from what I've read, our bodies are built for plants only." She was obviously disgusted by the fact I had eaten meat.

"Then explain Pinkie Pie's cupcakes. Cake is made with eggs, right? Those are just unborn chickens." I reasoned.

"It's not meat, and the eggs are unfertilized, which means they wouldn't become chickens anyway. Plus, we don't eat eggs straight anyway." She responded, countering my argument with a logical explanation.

"Whatever." I said, finishing the rabbit food on my plate. "Don't be too grossed out, though; my kind doesn't eat ponies, so you don't have to worry." I joked.

"Twilight! Twilight!" We heard a voice say. It belonged to Spike, the little dragon. "There's a letter from Princess Celestia for you!" He exclaimed, holding up a scroll of

parchment.

"Let me see that..." the mare responded, using her magic to levitate and unroll the scroll in front of her face. "Spike, go pack my bags, the princess wants me and the other Elements of Harmony immediately at Canterlot!" Spike saluted, then ran off to the library.

"I can come along too, right?" I inquired, receiving a confused glance. "You and your friends are the only ones I know in this world, plus I'm required by the duties assigned to me as a Keyblade Knight to help if this involves the Heartless."

"How do you know if it does involve those creatures?". Twilight asked.

"I don't. But I don't want to take the chance, either." I replied. "I'll head on over to Rarity's home, she'd probably have a spare bag I could pack. Plus, it would help you save time in getting the Elements of Harmony together."

Twilight looked shocked as we walked away from the outdoor restaurant. "How did you know she was one of them? I never told you about the Elements!"

"Yeah, you didn't. But I'm not stupid, I could figure it out; it made sense that your closest friends would be the other Elements." I trotted (ugh) over to the dress shop that the white-gray unicorn called home. I knocked on the door with my front hoof, still unaccustomed to the fact I lacked fingers.

"Just a minute!" I heard from inside. I patiently waited as I heard several crashes from within the building, followed closely by the appearance of the unicorn. "Oh, Zack, darling, I wasn't expecting you! Come in, come in."

I walked into her home, marveling at the amazing dresses she had made. I may be male, but I still appreciate the detail she put into her designs. "Yeah, I'm here to ask if you have any spare saddlebags I could borrow."

"Of course, dear. Just give me half a minute to customize them for you." she trotted off into the back with grace, and I had a sinking feeling that she was trying to impress me.

A few minutes later, she reappeared with a pair of bags suspended in her light blue aura of magic. The bags were a beige color, and the latch on both of them was the same as the marking on my flank. That was the "customization," I presume. The bags were lowered onto my body, and they fit snugly.

"Now, was there anything else I could help you with, dear?" she said, batting her eyes.

"Yes, actually. Twilight got a letter from the Princess. She asked the Elements of Harmony to go to Canterlot ASAP."

"AS...AP?" She asked slowly, making sure she repeated it right. That must not be an expression here.

"Uhh... As soon as possible." I said. I could feel a sweat drop fall down the back of my neck.

"Oh, dear! How exciting, your first trip to Canterlot!" she ran up to me, levitating a pair of red glasses to her face. "You must dress for the occasion, darling! A nice suit will fit you well, my dear colt!"

The white mare got around me and pushed me into the back room, where I could see large racks of fabric and several sewing machines. A white cat, complete with jeweled collar and fluffy fur, was sleeping on a roll of black cotton. The feline's nap was interrupted as Rarity rushed past it, grabbing a tape measure with her magic.

"Sorry, Opal, but duty calls!" Rarity said, rushing back over to me. I stood still as her measuring tape surrounded me, taking measurements of the width of my legs to the length of my flank. "I can see it... A dashing suit, a little frill here and there..." I cut her off there.

"Just a plain suit is fine, if I need to wear one." I said, uncomfortable at the moment.

"Dear, you are going to Canterlot! You cannot be seen wearing something as drab as a normal suit!" she ran over to a drawing table, sketching out ideas on the paper.

"Well, then just one small detail I need is good, then." Rarity gave me an annoyed look, like she had tried customer input before and it did not end well. "Nothing too big! It just needs to allow for freedom of movement; if the Heartless attack while we're there, I need to be able to fight effectively."

"Oh, all right. But something dashing, something to make all the mares just want to jump on you!"

I stopped her there, too. "Uhh, no thanks... I, Uhh..." my thoughts drifted to Xion, and I wasn't lying about the next part. "A mare has already captured my heart... I don't want to hurt other's feelings."

"Oh..." She said, and I could see a little disappointment in her eyes. She continued her work, however, and I decided to leave to lift the tension that had formed.

No sooner than when I stepped outside, I heard "Incoming!" followed by a blue-furred Pegasus crashing into me. "Sorry, Zack." Rainbow Dash said, helping me to my feet.

"I was actually about to go looking for you; Twilight's received summons from the princess, so go get packed." She took off without another word, flipping through the sky to her cloud-based home.

I headed back to Twilight's house to pack up my things, the few books and supplies that we could salvage from my ship. Inside, I did just that, notably packing the bestiary I had made of all the Heartless species I've seen so far, as well as their info and any additional data provided by Yen Sid before we left his tower. My IPod was also packed, and I learned how to manipulate the touch screen using levitation magic. Tricky at first, but I figured it out without Twilight's help.

A few hours later, I met up with the six ponies I presumed to be the Elements of Harmony. True to my hunch, those just happened to be the six I first met near the gummi ship. Spike was apparently staying behind to look after everyone's pets. Rarity handed (hoofed?) me a fancy suit, and I changed into it on the train to Canterlot.

I felt a dark magic present on the train as I slept that Night. Something evil was on board; however, the Heartless where nowhere to be found. I slept light, and the few hours of rest I got were enough to pass the time on the trip. We arrived in Canterlot the next morning, Twilight leading us to the castle herself.

(A/N: So here we go, main plot starts now. Kudos to you guys who gave me ideas, you're sure to see some of them come to happen. So, I hope to see you all next week! -Nano)


	8. The Journey

**Chapter 8**

The Journey

I walked the halls of the castle, admiring the crystal architecture. When the sun hit he walls just right, the entire place shone brilliantly, and cast colored shadows over the land and it's citizens. My black-gray form was headed for the throne room, to spend the day with my friends Shining Armor and Princess Candance. They happened to lead the Crystal Empire, but their duties were small and they happened to get most of the day off.

"Xion, good morning!" I heard Shining Armor say when I entered the room. He and Candance were sitting on two thrones constructed at the end of the hall, his out of blue crystal while hers was pink. I nodded in return, having forgotten my quill and parchment to speak.

"Forgot your quill again, sweetie? Don't worry, I have some right here for you.". Candance said, using her magic to levitate the supplies to me. I placed spare rolls of parchment in my saddlebags, and kept one roll out to write on, carrying that and a quill in my white magical aura.

{Thanks,} I wrote. {So, what are we doing today?} I asked.

"Well, I was going to take you to find that meteorite fragment you were so interested in. We found out where it landed." Shining Armor responded. "Candance has to stay here to keep watch on the empire, but I can take you to the crash site; some Ponyville ponies said it crashed in the Everfree Forest."

{What are we waiting for, then? Let's go!} I wrote, almost flinging the parchment to show my excitement. However, the two ponies in front of me looked disapproving.

"The reason we said we WERE going to take you," Candance began, "Was that our last chariot is out on loan to Princess Luna, and the only other way there is through the incredibly dangerous Fire Swamp."

"Neither are you a Pegasus, so you can't fly there." Shining Armor added on.

{Then give me a map, if you two aren't coming with me. I'm grateful for your hospitality, but this is too important for me to wait for, even for a few days.} I wrote in big, bold letters.

The married colt and mare looked at me oddly, but then smiled. Shining Armor said: "Well, then I guess I'll have to go with you. The Fire Swamp is too dangerous for just a lone mare like yourself."

I smiled in return. The next few minutes were spent waiting for Shining Armor to get his bags together. Candance was okay with her love leaving with me, since he could catch a chariot back to their castle from Ponyville or Canterlot.

We headed out from the castle after lunch, which was insisted by the Princess. The journey from the Crystal Empire was done from within hooded robes-this was to prevent Shining Armor from being recognized. I wasn't unused to being in a cloak like this; I was number XIV in the Organization. This was our uniform.

My uniform...

Pain flashed through my head, and I fell onto my front knees. Shining Armor was in front of me, saying word after word of worry. However, I couldn't hear him. My vision faded from this world, and instead, a memory floated to my eyes...

(DREAM SEQUENCE!)

"That was great, Xion!" Roxas said to me. We had just defeated a Darkside together, In front of the Twilight Town bell tower.

"Thanks," I responded. "Should we RTC now?" I asked him, gesturing towards the alley we arrived in.

However, Roxas didn't say what I expected him to. "No, I think you deserve a little something extra..."

"Something extra?"

"Yeah, the 'icing on the cake.' C'mon, I know this place..." He led me into the bell tower, avoiding the people who lived there. He told me to head to the top, and then disappeared for a bit. At the top, I found a ledge overlooking the town, and sat down for he first time since I woke up.

"Here you go, the 'icing on the cake'." Roxas said. He sat next to me on the ledge, and handed me a blue ice-cream bar.

"Thanks." I said, taking the dessert item.

"Well, go on, try it." I took a bite of he bar, and found its flavor to be rather unique.

"It's sweet... But kind of salty, too." I said, taking another bite.

"That's what I said!" Roxas exclaimed. The two of us shared the ice cream together, and returned to the castle later. I didn't hear the rest of the conversation, since the memory faded out there...

(IN REALITY)

"Xion, are you okay?" the white unicorn prince said in front of me. I nodded my head, standing up. "What happened? We're barely out of the city and you just collapsed!"

{I'm fine, really. It was just a memory that jumped to my head suddenly. It happens with me sometimes.} I wrote. But why does it happen? Does it have anything to do with my heart fragments? And why did it show my first hang-out with Roxas?

"Are you sure it won't happen for a while?" he asked, obviously worried.

I nodded, and the two of us continued on. Our first obstacle was the tundra that surrounded the Crystal Empire's protective spell. I knew it to be barren, cold, and a breeding ground for Heartless. Sure enough, the creatures attacked us; but the lowly shadows and soldiers were no match for my Keyblade and my partner's magic.

The second hazard were the mountains between the Crystal Empire and Equestria. We followed the train tracks through the mountains, the reason we couldn't use said train was due to the fact that some vandalistic ponies sabotaged the engine, and this particular train was out of service. Heartless avoided this area, so the journey wasn't as tiring as the tundra. After the mountain, we had entered a marshy area, my hooves sinking in mud with every step.

"We'll camp here." Shining Armor said. "Our next obstacle is the Fire Swamp itself, and we need to be well-rested to stand any chance."

{How many ponies have crossed it unharmed?}

"None. Ponies have made it through, but they tell tales, proven by thier wounds, of dangers such as fire geysers, lightningsand, and ROUS's." He said, pulling two sleeping bags out of his saddlebags.

I crawled into one, trying to fall asleep. However, my vision came to my mind; why did I see it? Over and over I played he memory in my head. In the morning, it still made no sense, and I lost hours of precious sleep from the trouble it gave me.

(NOTICE OF THE NANOMAN: so, the second chappie starring Xion has been delivered straight to your monitor (or tablet, or whatever). Next time- the dreaded Fire Swamp! If any of you got that reference, two things. One, I saw a map of equestria online, and something needed to fill in the space between the two castles. Second, if you did recognize it, please do not say so in the reviews; it spoils the surprise for other guests! Until next time, ~Nano)


	9. Shadow Strong-Royal Meeting

**Chapter 9a**

Shadow of the Strong

When dawn came to be, the sleeping bags were packed up, and Shining Armor brought out a small breakfast of oat bars. They tasted bland, but I've had worse. "Now, we'd better be careful. Even though many ponies have made it through, that doesn't mean we will." Shining Armor said, sounding worried.

{Don't worry; I'm sure we can handle anything in here.} I wrote, stuffing the parchment back into my bag.

The Fire Swamp was devoid of animal life; the plants hung low, and obscured much of our vision at any given time. It was hot, and the first fire geyser did take us by surprise; however; their characteristic black ash gave away their locations, and were avoided easily.

{You mentioned things called ROUS'S. What exactly are they?} I asked half an hour in.

"The Rodents Of Unusual Size. However, they should only live in the middle of the swamp. We're cutting through the outside edge, so I don't think-" Just as soon as he was saying it, a large rat, about half my equestrian size, jumped out from the underbrush. It latched onto Shining Armor's back, and my Keyblade was whipped out in seconds, detaching the creature from his form. A blast from his magic sent the rat flying.

{We should keep quiet}

"Heh, easy for you to... Write." I heard movement in the trees behind us, and I turned around, Keyblade afloat. "What is it?"

I shook my head, dropping the quill and parchment. More rodents appeared, but these were different. Their coats were dark black, their eyes piercing yellow. The Heartless insignia was inscribed in their fur, and I rushed to attack.

Shining Armor was behind me, blasting away the creatures with his magic. I hacked and slashed through them as we ran, cutting through the horde to our destination.

"I can see the end of the Swamp; Canterlot shouldn't be too far off!" He screamed. We abandoned any attack tactic as the rats closed in on us. I made it out of the forest, the Heartless seemingly unable to leave. I watched for my companion, but I could not see him.

"HELP!" he screeched out loud. I dove back into the fray, cutting back the Heartless. I saw him lying limp on he ground, his white coat stained red by his blood. I picked him up using my magic; however, I was still unused to his kind, so I had to banish my blade. Luckily, I made it out before any Heartless could catch me.

I placed the form of my companion on the ground, fiddling with my saddlebags to get a potion to heal him. I poured the green liquid over his wounds, but I knew it was too late. One of his wounds was too deep; the potion's effects nor my strongest magic could heal that.

"Xion... I know... I'm not gonna make it..." He said. "I'm a warrior, I know... When a wound is too great for magic..."

I shook my head, applying another potion. I couldn't give up. "Xion, those creatures... They took something from me... A small crystal, pink... Like a heart..."

I was surprised, and saddened. Shining Armor's heart now Belonged to darkness. "Xion... Tell Candance... I love her..." he said, going limp. His body faded from existence; as is the fate of any person without a heart. I grabbed his saddlebags, and placed them on my back.

I looked towards the horizon. A city stood on a mountain; that must be Canterlot. I started to walk in that direction, leaving behind the site of my friend's death.

I should have felt sad. Or hurt. Or at least ashamed; it was my fault he died. However, I am a Nobody. And Nobodies... We do not feel anything.

(a/n: let the hostile bronies attack me now.)

Chapter 9b

Royal Meeting

"For the last time, Rarity, it fits perfectly." I said, as the mare fiddled with my suit. As I asked, it was a little plain, and I could move freely. The six ponies with me had put on their own dresses, each tailored to their own likes.

"Darling, you must just let me..." I yelped in pain as she stuck a needle in my suit, drawing blood from beneath. Good thing my fur caught the blood; the seamstress would have fainted if it got on her latest work.

"Rarity, stop messing with him, he looks great." Twilight said. "Now, look sharp, girls," she glanced at me, "and Zack, we are about to enter Princess Celestia's throne room." Two doors opened up in front of us, Twilight having led us into the castle proper before. This room was lined with beautiful stained-glass windows, and two thrones sat at the end. One was a midnight blue, dark and full of stars. However, the occupied one was golden, and decorated with carvings of the sun. The creature sitting in that throne was a white alicorn, with a multicolored mane and tail that flowed as if there was a breeze. I saw my six friends bow to her, so that must be the Princess.

"Twilight, I am vey happy to see you here, safe and sound." she said. "And you brought your friends. As well as one extra; might I ask who he is, my student?"

I stood up, cutting off Twilight. "My name is Zack, your highness, and I am a new friend of Twilight's." I said, bowing. Hey, royalty is royalty, even if this one is a pony.

"Well,'I'm sorry, Zack, but this is a meeting for the elements of Harmony only. I'm afraid I have to ask you to leave." She said. Several unicorn guards came in, their stern looks telling me to do so. Luckily, Twilight spoke up.

"Princess Celestia, Zack saved our lives from these odd dark creatures. If it wasn't for him, we wouldn't be here." The others spoke up for me as well.

"He's the most awesome colt I've ever met!"

"He saved mah farm!"

"He helped me take care of the animals..."

"This darling colt is just a wonder to be around!"

"I threw a 'welcome to our circle of friends' party!"

"Girls..." I said, as the guards escorting me stopped. They looked to the Princess for orders.

"Since he seems to be of great importance, he may stay." I sighed in relief, then walked over to stand next to Twilight. "Now, the reason I have asked you six- no, seven, to come here, is of those 'dark creatures' you mentioned. They have been attacking many towns, including Canterlot. Anyone who is slain by them does not leave a body, either."

"Should we use the Elements, princess?" Rainbow said. She seemed eager to do so. However, I interjected.

"I was right, then. This does involve me, princess."

"How so, Zack? Tell me whatever you know of these creatures."

I cleared my throat. "For starters, they are called Heartless. They come into being when a sentient life's heart, or soul, is corrupted by darkness. The creature that is the result then goes out to consume other hearts, until the entire world is destroyed."

The princess looked at me sternly. "How do we get rid of them, then?"

"You need a Keyblade Knight to seal your land's keyhole. Only then will the Heartless stop entering; also, a Keyblade is the only weapon that can completely kill a Heartless."

"Yeah, and Zack's Keyblade is just plain awesome!" Rainbow interjected.

"Do you have it with you, so we can copy it for ourselves?" Celestia asked.

"I always have it with me." I said, summoning my dual blades to reality. They hovered next to me, caught by my dark green aura of magic. "However, you can't borrow it, nor copy it." I said.

The princess had a furious look on her face. "Allow me to demonstrate why. Applejack, could you kindly try to pick up my Keyblade?" I said, dropping the twin blades to the ground. The orange mare bent down, and grabbed one of them in her mouth. A second later, it warped to mine, and I banished them both. "A Keyblade is specific to its owner. Only the wielder, and other wielders who are close in friendship or love to him or her, can hold it."

"Then why can't you just let us know what it is made of, so we can defend ourselves? We can't expect you to defend us by yourself." Celestia asked.

"A Keyblade is made out of the light inside my Heart. You cannot replicate that; keyblades choose their wielders, and if you are not chosen, then you can never have one."

"I see. Are there any other Keyblade Knights you know of in Equestria?"

"Yes. My partner, Xion. However, we got separated, and I don't know where she is." I replied. "I'm very worried about her, but I know she'll be safe. She's a better fighter than I am, in my opinion."

"Princess, I think we should trust Zack on this one; he knows more about them than anyone else." Twilight said. He other ponies in the room agreed with her.

"Very well. I trust your judgement, my student. I will put out a search for this 'Xion'. Zack, what does she look like?"

I hesitated for a moment. I didn't know what she looked like in Equestrian form. However, from what I gathered from my transformation... "She's a black-colored mare, with an ice blue mane. Also, she's mute, and cannot speak."

"I will have my guards search for her. For now, however, it is late. You all should rest up; and Zack, I want you here tomorrow to tell me everything you know about he Heartless." she extended her right wing, pointing to the exit.

As we exited, a white colt in gold armor greeted us. "Miss Sparkle, only five rooms were prepared; we had thought you would retire to your tower. However, we do not have a room ready for Zack."

"It's fine, sir. Zack can sleep in my tower tonight; I have a spare bed in there." Twilight led me away from the rest of the group, shouting good-nigh to everyone else.

I overheard Rarity say, "I knew she was important here, but 'private tower of the castle' important!?"

(A/n: so, two half-chapters done. People will hate me, but I don't care. Next time: *insert spoilers here*! ~Nano)


	10. Reuinon

Chapter 10  
Reunion

I woke up early the next morning, intending to watch Celestia's sunrise by the city's gates. I always watched it when I lived here; I had a small spot that only I knew of. I tried my best to not wake Zack up from my guest bed, which I succeeded in doing. Heading out of my tower, I trotted down the main street, headed towards the north gate.

As I made my way down into the market, I saw the most peculiar mare. She had a black coat, but I couldn't tell the color of her mane; it was caked in mud, as well as her hooves and parts of her coat.

She looked at me with an expressionless face, but then I noticed something. She had two sets of saddlebags on her; one matched her cutie mark, but the other resembled my brother's! "Hey, you!" I called out. "Why do you have my brother's saddlebags?" she bolted away, tearing through the marketplace.

"Get back here!" I yelled. I used my magic to knock over a fruit cart in front of her, blocking the mare's path. She responded by using her own magic to fling a watermelon at me. I jumped over it, launching my own magical aura as an attack.

She flung off the saddlebags, and dodged my attack. She charged up her magic, and a ball of flame was soon headed my way. "Reflega!" I shouted, the magical barrier erupting around my form. The ball of fire was deflected back at her. She dodged it, and I saw her horn crackle with electricity.

The bolt of lightning was aimed straight at me. I'm not sure how that was physically possible, but I couldn't pull up another barrier, it was too short a time, I needed a little more concentration. I closed my eyes and prepared for the worst…

(Five minutes earlier…)

I shot my eyes open, half expecting what's happened to me lately to be a dream. Of course it wasn't, since I was staring up at the ceiling of Twilight's Tower. I lazily flopped out onto the floor, standing up on all four hooves. Shaking my head, I wandered out of the tower, asking a nearby guard if Twilight had left.

"Miss Sparkle had decided to watch the sunrise form the North Gate, newcomer." He said. I nodded in thanks, heading out in that direction. I wandered up the street, greeting various people as I passed. Most ignored me entirely, but some responded with another pleasant greeting.

Until I saw some running in the opposite direction from myself. All of them. Up ahead, I saw an overturned fruit cart, with Twilight locked in a magic duel with another unicorn. I summoned my bow, and ran towards them. I spotted the rouge mare launch a lightning bolt at Twilight, and I managed to-

"Sorry I'm late!" I said, deflecting the electricity with my bow.

"Zack?" Twilight said out loud, shocked. However, the other mare started to run at me. I Held up my twin blades, aiming both at the girl.

"One step closer and I won't hold back." I said. The mare jumped back, looking worried. She did something strange, however. With a flash of light, Two Become One came into being, floating alongside the mare.

"X-Xion?" I asked. I knew it was her now; nobody (heh, pun) can replicate another's signature Keyblade. She nodded.

"Zack, what are you talking about?" Twilight asked.

"I'll explain it in a bit. For now, let's just get back to your tower before any guards show up."

(Later, after meeting up with the other five ponies in the tower, as well as introductions.)

"OH MY CELESTIA!" Rarity screamed. Xion etched out a large question mark on her parchment. She brought much of it, so we didn't have to worry about her lack of communication.

"What's wrong, Rarity?" I asked.

"Out of all the possible things that could happen to a mare, this is just the worst. Possible. Thing!" She grabbed Xion by the tail, dragging her away from the group. She led her into Twilight's washroom, and inside, we could hear her saying things like "No mare should be as muddy as you," and "I can't believe your mane is such a brilliant color!"

When they came out, Xion's coat was washed sparkling clean, and her mane was styled like Rarity's. after a few laughs, we sat down, Xion shaking her head so her hair resembled that of her human form. Twilight got straight to the point, however.

"So, I have to ask, Xion, why do you have my brother's saddlebags?"

Xion scratched on her parchment with a quill. It read, {Shining Armor was your brother?}

"Yeah, he- wait, why did you use 'was' instead of 'is'?" Twilight looked worried.

{Twilight, Shining Armor had his heart stolen. He no longer exists.} Even I was shocked. Twilight told me a few things about her brother; I knew him to be somewhat strong with magic, I had hoped the Heartless would be no match for him.

"But… what… no…" Twilight was tearing up. However, I saw her sadness turn to rage real quick. "Then how DARE YOU!" she lunged forward, pinning Xion to the wall with her magical aura.

"Twilight, what in Celestia's name are you doing?" Rainbow shouted out. I summoned my Keyblade, ready if things turned ugly.

"How could you talk, or write, about his death so casually?! He took you in, he protected you; if it wasn't for him, you wouldn't be around, and you talk of his death like you crushed a dandelion beneath your hoof!" Twilight slammed Xion to the floor, and I saw the pained expression on her face.

I knocked into Twilight, causing her to drop Xion. "Twilight, stop! The reason she wrote that with no emotion is because she doesn't have any!" I said.

"Wait just one darn minute here," Applejack said, "I know you said something about no speakin' and stuff, but no emotions either?"

"Yes…" I said. "I guess it's time I told you why I'm here." The six ponies, Twilight almost in tears, sat down for my explanation. "Xion is what we call a Nobody."

"Well, that's not too nice…" Fluttershy said.

"No, with a capital 'N'. It's a name, given to beings who don't have a heart." Xion backed up a little.

"I thought you said that our hearts are our souls?" Rainbow asked.

"They are. Xion lost hers, and we're trying to find the pieces and fix it." I spent the rest of the morning explaining to them what exactly I was doing. Well, without mentioning that Xion and I were aliens to them. I only hope that they can help…

(NOTICE OF NANOMAN: so, the tenth chapter of the story… no other real news… EXCEPT SANDWICH! ~Nano)

(Somewhere else…)

"Are you sure that your 'Heartless' can help me in my revenge?" A figure said, her body full of holes.

"Yes, I swear it upon my life, my dear queen…" a tan colt said, his pink mane flowing in the breeze.

"Then I shall call upon the power of darkness that sleeps in the moon. And Equestria shall fall to my armies!" the figure looked down towards her castle's courtyard, at the multitude of creatures below, a mix of changelings and Heartless. "Soon, Celestia, Twilight Sparkle, and every other pathetic pony will bow down before Queen Chrysalis!"


	11. The Mare of the Moon

Chapter 11  
The Mare of the Moon

"So, could you run that by me one more time?" Princess Celestia asked. I was in her throne room, describing to her what Xion and I need to do in Equestria.

"Of course. Xion and I are both Keyblade bearers. One of us needs to find your world's keyhole and seal it, to prevent any more Heartless from entering." I said. Xion sat down nearby, scratching down notes to remind me of what to say on parchment.

"And what does this 'keyhole' look like? If you tell me, I can have my guards search for it to help."

"I'm afraid it's not that simple, like everything we do. The keyhole is an object in the world, usually one that has great importance to it. However, only a bearer of the key can actually see it for what it actually is." I said. Xion poked my side with her quill, and I read off her sheet. "Also, the Heartless will also be searching for it. If they find it before we do, it's all over for your world."

"I see. Now, about the Heartless; besides a Keyblade, what is effective towards them?"

"Only a Keyblade can permanently kill a Heartless; any other attack will either cause it to disappear for a short while, or not affect it at all." Again, Xion bumped me. "However, magic in any form can also kill a heartless, but it must be a strong spell."

"So unicorns will be invaluable against this threat. Now, I will-"

"PRINCESS!" a guard shouted, charging in the room. "PRINCESS CELESTIA!"

"Yes, captain, what is it?"

"We've sighted an army of changelings, just outside the south gate! The Heartless are among them, and Queen Chrysalis herself is leading them!" He panted. "Our guard is already constructing defensive spells and barriers in preparation for the attack."

"Good. Zack, I'm afraid we'll have to continue our chat later. I must head to the front wall, to see things for myself."

"Xion and I will meet you there, your highness. This involves the Heartless, and therefore us as well." Xion and I were picked up in a golden magical aura, one I realized to be Celestia's. she teleported all three of us directly to the front wall.

Magic. It breaks the laws of EVERYTHING.

In the distance, I did see an army. One consisting of creatures of different origins, but dark hearts all the same. "I can't believe this. I thought we were rid of Chrysalis." A guard said.

"Apparently we're not. Go and wake my sister Luna, she will need to see this as well." The guard saluted, and ran off to the castle. A few minutes later, a dark-coated alicorn landed next to Celestia, whom I took to be Luna.

"Why did you interrupt my slumber, sister? It is noon, your time to rule." She said, a large yawn going through her jaws.

"Look, your highness." I said, pointing a hoof towards the army.

"Oh, my. That is why you woke me." She squinted into the sky. "However, what is that pegasus doing?" she pointed high in the air, as a pegasus pony flew over and landed on the wall next to us.

However, a pegasus it didn't stay. It was consumed by green fire, and a black, insect-like creature remained. "A changeling!" Celestia roared, charging up an attack.

"Be still, Princess! I am but a messenger from my Queen." He said, in a raspy voice that sounded similar to nails on a chalkboard.

"Then speak, and deliver your message." Luna said, calming her sister.

"Queen Chrysalis wishes to parley with you. She wishes to negotiate terms on which your ponies could be spared from our wrath." The small creature took flight with its small wings, buzzing away back to the army.

"Sister, you cannot go, for it is obviously a trap." Luna said. "She means to imprison you, or kill you."

"I know. But the lives of the ponies here come first."

"I will go, then. Better me than you, sister. She does not know what I am capable of." Luna said.

"I'll go with you, your highness. The Heartless are present. I will keep them at bay if they attack." I summoned my bow, only to reinforce the fact.

Celestia sighed. "Very well, sister. You and Zack shall go in my stead. Be careful, both of you." Luna and I jumped off the wall, landing on the ground below. We walked towards the army, carefully and at a non-threatening pace. From the mass of creatures came a large changeling with green hair, and a pony in a hooded cloak.

"Greetings, fair Luna. I am-" the changeling started.

"I know who you are, Chrysalis. I am here in my Sister's place, to negotiate your wishes." She said. My Keyblade was hovering next to me, in case of an attack.

"I see. Well, there three non-negotiable conditions that must be met if I am to call off the attack on your precious Canterlot."

"And they would be..?"

"Firstly, I want the Crystal Empire emptied of all of your kind, so mine has a proper place to call home."

"I will discuss it with Celestia. Next?"

"Second, I want my kind to have full access to Equestria; let us live amongst you, let us live in general."

"That can easily be done."

"Finally, I want my personal revenge on the pony who ruined my life before- Twilight Sparkle. If it wasn't for her, things would be very different right now."

"What would your revenge entail?"

"Banishment or death. Whichever is easier for you to perform." Chrysalis smiled.

"I cannot promise that one. Twilight is a very important mare; we cannot simply hand her over to your wishes."

"Then my companion here will 'help' you decide in my favor." Chrysalis turned to the cloaked pony. She threw back her hood, revealing a slender, pink-coated form, with a pale blond mane. Her eyes were a dark purple, and I could just sense darkness radiating off her.

"Who is this mare?" Luna asked. The pony in question shook her cloak off, revealing she had wings; however, a horn was also present, another alicorn.

"Why Luna, I thought you would recognize me." She said, her voice cold and smooth.

"No…"

"Yes. We only spent a thousand years together; I had hoped you wouldn't forget me after three without."

"Who is she, princess?" I asked, my bow hovering in attack position.

"She is called Nightmare, Zack. She takes form only by possessing another." Luna replied, backing up.

"Yes, you figured that much out." Nightmare said. "However, this body is a little too… weak, for my tastes. Yours is already immune to my possession, having the Elements of Harmony fix that." She chuckled. "But that won't stop me from possessing any other pony and make her do my wishes."

"Ugh…" Luna was conflicted.

"I will possess you instead!" Nightmare shouted, a black cloud erupting from her body. The body she possessed lost her horn, turning back into a pegasus. The cloud shot out at me, and I reacted as best I could.

"Reflect!" is shouted, Twilight having been trying to teach me that defensive spell. It worked for the first time, and that was to my happiness and surprise. The cloud of dark aura shot back the other way, aimed at the changeling queen. It connected, and I pained scream erupted from Chrysalis.

A few minutes passed. All of us stood still, and Chrysalis went through a metamorphosis unlike any I've seen. Her mane became more teal, and flowed behind her as if there was wind. A cutie mark in the shape of a few stars and the full moon appeared on her flank, and she grew taller and slimmer. When her eyes opened, they were the same shade as the possessed pony.

"There… not what I expected, but this body can do." Chrysalis said, in the same voice as the possessed pony.

"Queen Chrysalis, we need you-" Luna began.

"This is no longer just Chrysalis. I, the mare of the moon, have taken this body for my own. I am Nightmare Chrysalis!" she reared back on her hind legs, and the army behind her cried out in cheers.

I grabbed the unconscious pony with my magic, placing her on my back. "Princess, I believe this parley is over." I said, backing up.

"Indeed it is, little ones!" Nightmare Chrysalis shouted. "Before, you could be spared. However, MY vengeance knows no limits! My army attacks at dusk, go and prepare your graves, little ones!" she turned, and walked back towards her army, laughing all the way.

"Come, Zack. We must inform my sister and tend to this pony's injuries." Luna and I also walked back to Canterlot, ready to tell everyone the grim news.

(NOTE OF NANO: alright, here we go- next time, the Siege of Canterlot, Part 1! ~NANO)


	12. The Siege of Canterlot, Part 1

Chapter 12  
The Siege of Canterlot, Part 1  
My point of view.

"This is disturbing news indeed," Celestia said, after we relocated back into the castle. "I have no plan for this; for once, I cannot predict what would happen."

"We will fight, that's what we'll do!" Rainbow shouted. She and the others of the Elements of Harmony had taken their respective elemental necklaces (in Twilight's case, a crown) and wore them now.

"I don't see any other choice… but the safety of the people comes first, above all else." Celestia said, bowing her head down. A guard ran in with an update on our enemy's movements.

"Princess!" He said, saluting. "The army outside has Canterlot completely surrounded; we don't have the kind of force necessary to protect that much area!"

"Keep in mind that the Heartless can pop up just about anywhere they want, as well." I said, only adding to our plight.

"What we need is a strategy, a battle plan." Twilight said. Everyone nodded in response, as the gears in my head turned with just the plan in mind."

"You need a plan? Then listen. I need the Pegasus Royal Guard in the air, taking out any hostile fliers. Unicorn Royal Guard, form up on main roads and paths in the city, your magic is invaluable against our enemy." I continued on, "Rainbow Dash, Applejack, and Pinkie Pie, I want you three to assist the Guards in this, however you can."

"Earth Pony Royal Guard, half of you barricade parts of the city, while the other half evacuates non-combat ponies to the castle. Rarity, Fluttershy, help them out here. Meanwhile, Princess Celestia, protect the East gate; Luna, the West. Xion, you'll head South, and I'll support the North gate. Twilight, stay here at the castle and cast every defensive spell you can in order to protect the people." I finished, sounding proud of my plan.

The leader of the Pegasus Royal Guard spoke up, however. "Who in the hay put you in charge, little colt?" The others in the room, even Celestia and her sister, agreed.

I walked up to the captain sternly. "What put me in charge?" I'll go ahead and blow my otherworldly cover here; I'd rather do that than let all of them die. "I am a human, from Planet Earth. I am one of the Keyblade's chosen, sworn to destroy the Heartless. I've come here to not only find a shard of my friend Xion's heart, her very _soul, _but also to save your sorry flanks from the darkness that threatens to destroy your world. My name is Zack, and by the gods above, that is exactly what I'm going to do. Any questions?"

Shocked looks flew over everyone's faces, excluding Twilight since she already knew. "You're an alien?" was the first question asked, from Princess Luna.

"Yes, Xion and I are both not from your world, and we've come here to help you protect it. So, if you want your world to keep on spinning, you'll listen to me." I said.

Celestia spoke to the guard captain. "Do as he said; I can think of no better plan." The captain barked out orders, following my plan of attack. I nodded in Xion's direction, as the two of us rushed out of the castle, headed to each of our intended destinations. When I reached the North Gate, four unicorn guards walked up to me.

"We've been assigned to assist you in defending the gate." I nodded, and my bow hovered above me. The sun had started to set.

"Are you all ready?" I asked, seeing purple magic in the sky. Twilight must be setting up her spells. On the ridge in the distance, I saw Nightmare Chrysalis rear up on her hind legs, signaling her army to attack. Next to her stood a pony, a unicorn, with a long, pink mane. A pink and green scythe was resting across his back, and I knew Marluxia had something to do with all of this. Also present was a white stallion, another unicorn; he had a blue mane, but nothing else could be seen, for he wore a pony-shaped version of the Organization's coat.

"Something wrong?" the unicorn to my left asked. He sounded nervous of the whole predicament.

"Yeah, after this battle's over, I have a score to settle with a pony up there. For now, though, I need you four to support me in defending this city!" I said, trying to rally their spirits.

The Heartless and the Changelings started to break past the doors. When they opened, we charged them. "FOR CANTERLOT!" we shouted, the four of them shooting magical energy at our foes while I shot down each and every Heartless with my bow.

There was no end to their forces, and we had to fall back along the street a few times to give ourselves enough room to manuver. One of our number went down, unable to continue fighting.

"HELP!" I heard, from our left. I told the guards to hold off the forces as best they could while I jumped into the rubble of a nearby house.

"Don't worry, I got you," I said, using my limited magical abilities to pull rubble off of a gray pegasus's wing. Her mane was a light blond, her eyes yellow… and at odd angles to each other.

"Thanks, mister." She said.

"Can you send word to the palace for me?"

"Yessir! Derpina Hooves, expert deliverypony, at your service!"

"Twilight Sparkle should be in the throne room of the castle. Tell her that the North Gate is compromised and she needs to divert some attention here to help us!" she ran off, her wing being unable to flap. I jumped back at our enemies, my twin daggers digging into the back of a changeling.

A few minutes later, I saw a Soldier Heartless fly across the street. Confetti followed it, and I knew who was responsible. The pink mare joined our fight with her cannon, blasting our foes away with a party and a really creepy smile.

A shot of purple magic flew past my head, causing a Changeling to fly backwards into two Heartless and one of his kin. Twilight jumped next to me, dodging attacks as she made her own. "You asked for help?"

"I expected you to use barrier magic or something to help."

"The injured unicorn guards and some of the citizens are keeping my spells up. Besides, I think you needed another horn over here to help."

"Look out!" I said, jumping over her to kill a Heartless about to slash through the violet mare. "Gotta be more careful than that, Twilight."

However, I saw that a Heartless had tackled Twilight while I dealt with the other one. I knocked it off her, dragging her behind the three guards who were still fighting.

Twilight was unconscious. "Twilight! No, not now- open your eyes! OPEN YOUR EYES!"

(Twilight's point of view)

Where am I? I remember seeing Zack take out a Heartless, then one jumped on me… now, everything's black. Down below, I can see a little light. I headed towards it, propelling myself through empty space with magic. My hooves touched down on a giant circle of stone, patterned like stained glass. My figure was the dominant piece, with my five friends in smaller circles around my head. A view of Canterlot was in the background.

_Welcome, Twilight Sparkle._ I heard a voice say. _Welcome to your destiny._

(A/N: whoohoo! Next time- the Siege of Canterlot, Part Two! Will we be able to fight off the Heartless and the Changelings? Will Nightmare Chrysalis get her (their?) revenge? And what in the hay happened to Twilight? Find out then! ~Nano)


	13. The Siege of Canterlot, Part 2

Chapter 13  
The Siege of Canterlot, Part 2 (Awakening)  
Twilight Sparkle's point of view

"Where am I?" I asked, out to the voice in the void.

_The Where and the When are not important. What matters are the choices you make here and now. _The voice said to me. I saw three flashes of light appear in front of me, and each one held up a different item; I shield on one, a magic staff on the second, and a sword on the third.

_Choose a power in which you wish, be it that of the Guardian, the Mystic, or the Warrior. _I debated in my head over which one to choose; it's not like I can do anything else here.

"I choose the power of the Guardian. I wish to protect my friends." I said aloud. The shield rose higher, and glimmered in the light.

_You have chosen to protect those close to you. Now, in return for this power, which will you give up?_

"I give up the power of the Warrior. It does not suit a pony like me, who is well versed in magic." The sword clattered to the floor, and its blade dulled. Then, all three vanished in glints of light, leaving me alone once again.

_You have chosen to be a protector, and you have chosen to do so without using brute strength. You must now prove that your choice is correct. A trial, one of Heart, awaits you._

"How do I get to it?"

_Simply open the door. _Before I could ask, I turned around to see a light pink door, heavily detailed with heart designs, standing shut. _Do not be afraid. This door leads to great sorrows… but also great joy. This door leads to a future in which you control, but at what cost..?_

I tried to open the door, but my hooves couldn't make it budge. My magic didn't work either. _You must want to open this door with your very heart, young one. Only then will it reveal its secrets._ My heart? That's right, Zack said they were similar to souls…

I closed my eyes, and looked deep inside myself. I felt a power, a surge of strength. When I opened my eyes, I saw an object suspended in midair by my magic. It looked to be a sword, but this one had a golden hilt with a purple gemstone in it.

The guard for it surrounded the hilt, and imbedded in it were other gems, the other colors of the Elements of Harmony. A shape resembling my crown, without the sparkle symbol, served as a cross-guard. The blade itself looked like a white unicorn horn, with a black line that supported a large, purple star that looked like my cutie mark.

"Is this… a Keyblade?" I asked myself. I tapped the blade against the door, and I heard a large unlocking sound. "I guess it is." I walked through the now-open structure, headed into the unknown.

(Outside)

"Open your eyes, Twilight! OPEN YOUR EYES!" I heard from above me. I did as the voice instructed. I saw Zack, with the most worried face you could possibly have on his snout. "Oh, thank the Maker you're okay!" He said, turning around just in time to sink his Keyblades into a Heartless.

"I'm fine now…" I said. Before, I had a Keyblade too… where was it now? As I pondered, it appeared in front of me, as if by magic. Wait, what do I mean by "as if?" I AM magic! I used my powers to swing my blade around into a Heartless, it disappearing into vapors after I made contact.

"Twilight, is that a-"

"Keyblade? Yeah, a weird voice just gave it to me. I hope you don't mind if I help out!" the two of us together, as well as the guards, were able to advance on the incoming forces, and I saw them begin to thin out. However, an explosion came from behind us- from the castle.

The enemy forces retreated, but the five of us ran to the castle walls, to see what happened. We met Princesses Celestia and Luna, as well as Xion, in the courtyard. "WHO DARETH BRING FIRE TO MINE CASTLE WALLS?" Luna shouted. The intensity of the battle must have made her Old Royal Canterlot voice come out.

My friends also appeared, the enemy reported to have retreated on all fronts. "Why, I do, your majesty." I heard a voice say. The figure flew down from the hole in the castle's exterior, landing in front of us.

"Nightmare Chrysalis." Zack growled. He, Xion, and I summoned our Keyblades.

"Ooh, a third Key-brat, huh? Good thing my numbers have increased as well." Another voice said. It was the pony Zack saw earlier, standing on the hill next to Nightmare. The cloaked pony also appeared. "Say hello to-"

"Shining Armor? BROTHER?" I shouted at the cloaked one. He looked exactly the same- same eyes, same mane, and from what glimpse I saw of it, the same cutie mark!

"Who is Shining Armor?" the second pony said. "I am Morxar, Organization XIII's number XV. Why do you call me such, mare?" I was hurt by the comment- I was sure that's him…

"So, Marluxia, you've stooped as low as recruiting a dead pony's Nobody, huh?" Zack said.

"Nobody? Then that means… He is my brother!"

"Not anymore, filly." Marluxia said. "When he had a heart, yes. But his destroyed body gave rise to the creation of this handsome fellow, who has aided me already in getting us here. His memory of the Canterlot Underground is astounding."

Nightmare Chrysalis spoke next. "Now, you will all meet your doom at my hooves!" she lunged forward, knocking over Celestia. She fell to the ground, and Nightmare stamped her foot to the ground, causing the ground itself to erupt and cover my teacher.

"Princess Celestia!" I shouted, ramming my Keyblade against the earthen dome as hard as I could. Meanwhile, Xion and Zack were fighting Marluxia and Morxar. My friends and Luna kept Nightmare at bay, but I would soon change that. I rushed forward, driven by anger, and my Keyblade hung at my side like a lance.

"Not today!" Nightmare said, releasing a wave of dark magic. It knocked all of us to the ground, and we couldn't move.

"Is that all the heroes of this world have to offer?" Marluxia said. "Pitiful."

"Now, you will all suffer as I take reign, and drown the world in Eternal Chaos!" she let out a maniacal laughter, but it was cut short when a cloud, pink and fluffy appeared above her. It rained on her- it rained chocolate milk.

"Now I may be late, but that doesn't mean someone can steal my thunder like that." I heard a male voice say. I looked up, using just my eyes, and I saw Discord of all people flying above the scene, wearing a floral print shirt. "I mean, I was only on vacation for a week, people. Oh, well. Sorry, honey, but Chaos is _my_ thing, and I won't allow anyone to hurt my friends as you have!"

(A/N: so, a few things. One: yes, Twilight is a Keyblade wielder. Get over it. Two: Yes, Shining Armor's Nobody is Morxar (Armor with an x- Shining Armor was too weird to fit in the x). Three: Yes, this whole story pretty much takes place before the last episode of season 3, but everything else has happened- evidenced by Discord being friends with the mane six. Four: No, I will not update again soon, the creative juices stopped flowing for me. See you next time, ~Nano)


	14. The True Key

Chapter 14  
The True Key

"Discord! Why, when did you ever care for ponies? I thought you'd rather just drown them in chaos." Nightmare Chrysalis spoke, her voice echoing a little through the courtyard. I was still stunned by her attack, and I could see the others were as well. Twilight and her Keyblade were not too far off, as were Xion and hers.

"I've cared about them ever since they became my friends. Now, how about we settle this like the gods we are?" he snapped his fingers, causing the courtyard's hedges to rise up and encase the battlefield in a sort of barrier. "I'll go first!" he said, turning the ground below Nightmare into… soap?

She slipped and skidded, the slippery surface not providing any traction whatsoever. She jumped over to more stable ground soon enough. "Your pathetic party tricks can't harm me!" she said, firing a bolt of magic at Discord.

The flying dragon… goat… buffalo… pony… _thing _flew to the side, dodging it completely. "If tricks are all you think I can do, then for my next one…" another snap of the fingers, and a pink cloud appeared next to him. I could hear Pinkie Pie getting excited, for what reason I couldn't tell. Discord grabbed a chunk of the cloud (I'm beginning to just let things happen with no explanation) and threw it at Nightmare. For some strange reason, chocolate milk showered out of the cloud. And then exploded.

"Enough of your foolishness!" Nightmare screamed. The fighting between them continued, but not before I noticed something- my strength was returning. I stretched out a hoof, and soon I could stand. I crouched low, to not draw attention to myself.

"Zack!" twilight whispered. "How are you moving?"

"I don't really know. But I'm not complaining- I'll help Discord out." I whispered back, my Keyblade flashing to my sides, hovering. Both of the fighters were focused on each other, which worked to my advantage. I ran at a full gallop towards Nightmare, who turned around just in time to see my attack. One of my blades lodged in her side, while the other pinned a hoof to the ground.

"YOU LITTE INSECT!" she taunted, jabbing at me with her horn. It connected, and a small puncture wound appeared in my left shoulder. Discord flew up right in front of her, and a good old-fashioned punch to the face knocked her to the ground. I put the blades together to form my bow, and several arrows struck Nightmare where she lay.

Nightmare Chrysalis didn't move after that. She just lay there, unconscious. Discord landed next to me. "I do believe we haven't met before. Discord, God of Chaos and Disharmony, at your service."

"I'm Zack, Keyblade Knight. Nice to meet you as well." Discord's reaction wasn't what I expected.

"I knew I recognized your weapon as one. Tell me, how is my friend Yen-Sid?"

"You know Yen-Sid?" I asked. "I thought this world wasn't connected to the others."

"It isn't anymore. I severed the connection long ago, before I was sealed away for my actions. It was probably the only good thing I did back then, in order to make sure the Heartless didn't ruin my paradise of chaos."

"Interesting." I said. I then realized- Yen-Sid must be thousands of years old! However, the conversation was cut short before I could ask.

"How very charming, Discord. However, I'll be needing Zack for a moment." I heard Nightmare say. She was standing up, badly injured. "This form is weak, and rejects my presence. You, however," the dark cloud from before ejected from Chrysalis, the latter returning to her normal form. "Shall not!" the dark cloud said. I couldn't react with a counterspell quickly enough like before, as the cloud entered my body.

"Zack!" Twilight screamed, and I could see Xion struggling to move. However, my vision turned to inside me…

(My heart)

"My, my. What a beautiful heart we have here… too bad it's going to be darkened any second now." Nightmare said, hovering over the stained-glass platform that represented my heart. I shot an arrow at her from behind.

"Oh, so you're in here too, trying to defend-" she turned around, turning into a more ponylike form, only to be shocked. "What are you?"

I stood up, on two legs. "I'm a human, Nightmare. And in my heart, we fight by my rules." In my human form, I ran up to her, brandishing my bow in one hand. She was taken completely by surprise, and the sharp edge of my bow sliced deep in her flank.

She shot magic at me, and I deflected it. The fight between us continued like this- for how long, I couldn't tell. I was getting tired, though, exhausted. She could sense this, and knocked me down. "You could never have defeated me, if that makes you feel any better."

"You'll never win…. But surely you'd know that."

"Then explain to me how I already have." She reverted to a smoky form, and dove into the center of the platform. I rolled over, and dug my blades into the floor, trying to stop her. If I only knew what I just did…

(Outside, Twilight's point of view.)

We were able to move after Nightmare tried to posses Zack. The spell must have been dependant on her. Zack's body was coursing with energy, preventing anyone from getting close. Soon, he, well… exploded.

(lazy writing. Sue me.)

The Smoke prevented us from seeing what happened, but two objects flew out of the smoke at high speed. Both crashed into the hedge walls, and Discord lowered them. I saw Zack's body lying on the ground, and we rushed over to him.

"Zack! Are you okay?" I shouted out. His body stirred, and his eyes opened. When he stood up, it was taller than before. His cutie mark had acquired several stars near it, and his eyes were a deep violet.

"I knew I would be victorious." We heard Nightmare's voice coming from his mouth. The Keyblade was summoned to her side, hovering just as it did with Zack. "And that poor, pitiful human tried oh so hard to stop me, to no avail."

I was enraged, and charged her down with my Keyblade, Xion doing the same. Above, I saw Rainbow flying down at high speed, also wanting to attack Nightmare. She did go down- but not by our attacks. She went down from a blue arrow of light.

"I think not." I heard Zack say. I turned around, to see a figure standing up on its hind legs, and only possessing fur on top of its head. He wore clothing, and in one hand carried Zack's bow. "I'll actually have to thank you, Nightmare. Now I can kick your ass more easily!"

(A/N: okay. What I did here: some call it creative freedom, some call it hacking, and others call it lazy writing. I call it all three. *puts on sunglasses* DEAL WITH IT. ~Nano)


	15. Bond of Friendship

Chapter 15  
Bond of Friendship

Nightmare stood across the clearing, in my body. My pony body, to be exact. "This is impossible! I control your form!" She shouted, Twilight backing up from her.

"I'mma not… really… yeah, could somepony please explain to me jus' what in the hay is going on?" Applejack said. The others nodded and agreed.

"Quite, I'd like to know how exactly you resisted my possession technique." Nightmare said.

"You only took the body that the Keyblade made for me, to blend in on this world. You wanted to possess my body, right? Well, I let you take that one." I brought my bow up to a combat stance, drawing back an arrow. "Now, how about we finish what we started in my heart?"

"With pleasure." She erected a barrier of fire and flames, black in color but not hot at all. I still wouldn't want to touch them. Her version of my Keyblade was in dual blade form, and the possessed version of my body had grown wings after she controlled it.

She flew at me, and my arrow was fired at her. Nightmare rolled over it, and I had to block her swipes with my bow. I swung my bow down, and she blocked with her blades. "My reign has come, human! I will rule all of Equestria, and drown it in darkness!"

"I'm not so sure on that, Nightmare. You still need to get past me."

She laughed, one that made me rethink that statement. "Do you really think you and your friends actually won? Marluxia has claimed the throne of Equestria for me already, while you were all busy trying to stop me!"

The ponies outside the flames looked around, as did I. Marluxia and Morxar were nowhere to be found. Nightmare used this opportunity to get in a few swipes, severely injuring my ribs and arms. She banished the flames, taking to the air and flying towards the castle.

"Zack!" Rarity shouted as the six ran over to me. The princesses had flown in pursuit of Nightmare. "Are you alright, darling?"

"Yeah… just need to heal up a little…"

"Allow me. Cura!" Twilight said, a circle of green grass and flowers surrounding me. My wounds healed up, and the pain went away a little. "That should help."

"Yeah, thanks, Twilight. Xion, how are you holding up?" I turned to her. Like the others her head came up to my shoulder in height.

{I'm fine, I was more worried about you. However, we should get to Nightmare and stop her before it's too late.}

"Let's go, then!" Rainbow shouted. The eight of us ran towards the castle, and Twilight led us to the throne room. Explosions riddled the air, and Luna was sent flying out of the throne room.

"Princess!" I said, rushing over to her. "What happened?"

"Nightmare… too strong… Celestia… captured…" She passed out after that.

"Fluttershy, Rarity, stay with the princess. She needs help." I said. The two ponies both nodded as the rest of us crashed into the chamber ahead.

"So nice to see you again, but so soon? I barely had enough time to settle in." Nightmare said. She sat on the throne near the end of the hall, with Marluxia and Morxar near her. Celestia was out cold in a cage of darkness near the ceiling.

"Nightmare, your reign will end as soon as it began!" I shouted, launching an arrow. Marluxia blocked it with his scythe, making it hover with a pink aura of magic.

"I don't think so. Marluxia, Morxar, end them." Nightmare said.

"I think not, your highness." Marluxia said. "The Organization may have helped you to this position, but we know a battle we can't win when we see it. There is no way that the two of us can take on the six of them. I'd rather not lose a brand-new member, either." He said, summoning a corridor of darkness. "We will leave you to them, your highness. You surely have more than enough strength for the job."

Morxar followed him through. Marluxia was a slippery one, that's for sure- but I'll get to him in time. Right now, Nightmare was our target. Xion rushed forward, flanked by Rainbow and Applejack. I stood back more, launching arrows at our foe. Twilight stood beside me, casting ranged magical attacks, and Pinkie Pie shot herself out of her party cannon as a flying kick/cannonball hybrid.

Nightmare apparently knew how to use my Keyblade. She knocked aside the front ponies, ducking under Pinkie as the pink mare flew out a window. Xion was batted aside, landing next to Rainbow on the floor. She charged Twilight and I down, and I had a crazy idea.

"Twilight, do you know what a joust is?" I asked.

"Yeah, we have those up in the Crystal Empire. Why..?" I climbed onto her back, receiving a shocked response from the unicorn. "Zack, what in Celestia's name are you-"

"I'm slower in my human form. You run me up to her, I'll attack, since I'm stronger. Together we can fight better than if we are apart." She nodded, and reared up, positioning herself for a charge as she banished her Keyblade. I separated mine into twin blades, holding them out to attack.

Nightmare and Twilight charged. When we clashed in the center of the room, I defended from a blow sure to inflict a severe wound on Twilight, but missed my counterattack- my blades were too short.

We turned, and charged again. Same outcome as before- I couldn't reach her with my weapons. "Twilight," I said, "Summon your Keyblade."

"Why? Then I'll have another thing to worry about, other than getting hit."

"Just do it." She summoned her Keyblade, hovering it next to her. I reached out, and grabbed it with my hand. "Just as I thought; our bond of friendship is strong, Twilight; I'm able to hold your Keyblade."

"That, or it senses it's needed like that." Twilight said. We charged at Nightmare, and I held Twilight's Keyblade out to attack.

"We fight as one!" I shouted as a sort of battle cry. I knocked Nightmare down onto her side, skidding across the ground. Jumping off Twilight, I aimed her Keyblade down towards Nightmare. It touched her heart, and a flash of light blinded me for a second. When I opened my eyes, Twilight had her Keyblade back, and Nightmare was hovering as a cloud in front of us.

"Why you little NOTHINGS! How dare you remove me from that body!" she screamed.

"Shut up already. I'm not letting you acquire enough forms to rival a final boss, which you're not." I slashed with my Keyblade, making the fog disappear. Nightmare was no more.

"Finally." I said. The body left on the ground, my Equestrian disguise, faded from existence, since it shouldn't have existed on its own. "Now, this is usually when-" Twilight's crown had started shimmering, and hovered above her head. "Yeah, when I seal the keyhole." I was transported to the world's heart for a few moments in order to lock the world's keyhole. One more of those under my belt, I suppose.

A few hours later, everything seemed normal as the six Elements of Harmony, Xion, Discord, and myself all were standing in front of the Princesses on their thrones. "Zack and Xion," Celestia began, "I cannot begin to describe my gratitude. You not only have saved us twice over, but have also risked your lives to destroy an ancient evil that was not even your purpose in this world."

Luna continued, "For this, we are giving you the highest honor we can to outsiders- we hereby dub the two of you an honorary Prince and Princess of Equestria."

Xion and I were a little shocked, but pleased all the same. "Thank you, your highnesses, it is an honor." I started. "But, however, I have to ask two favors of you and the others here."

Xion wrote down, {Our ship, the _Falcon, _is split in two. If you could find some way to fix it, we would be grateful.} Discord immediately volunteered to do so, and warped out of the room to start.

"And the other, Prince Zack?" Celestia asked.

"We still need to find a fragment of Xion's Heart."

(A/N: a little rushed, but that's only because I wanted the fighting bit to end. So, now that the Keyhole is sealed, how long until we find the fragment of Xion's heart? Find out next time! ~Nano)


	16. Change in Heart

Chapter 16 ~Change in Heart~

August 22  
3:45 pm  
Canterlot Castle  
Zack

The princesses were slightly shocked by my request. "A shard of Xion's heart?" Luna asked.

"Yes. You'd refer to it as a 'soul,' however. A heart takes on the form of a pink, crystalline, well, heart, when it is separated from the body and mind. Xion's was shattered, and finding it was the reason we came to Equestria- I sensed one was present in this world." I explained.

"Well, if ya know that one's in this here world," Applejack said, "Then why the hay can't ya just go to where it is?"

"Too much magical interference from the unicorns of Equestria. It's no fault of theirs- there's just too much magic imbued to the land as well." I thought for ideas. "But I was thinking that the princesses here, since they have a keen ability in magic, could sense a source of power not from their world."

"We will try, Prince Zack." Celestia said. "But, unfortunately, I cannot make any promises. As powerful as we are, I do not know if my sister and I can distinguish the energy radiating off this shard."

"I can help you." A voice said behind us. I turned around, to see a unicorn guard standing in the doorway. The six Elements of Harmony sidestepped to allow the stranger to approach. "I know where this shard is, and I can lead you to it."

"I'm sorry, but I don't think I know you…" Luna said. That got me on guard- a princess didn't know one of her own guards, so this one…

"I'm not one of your guards, this is just a disguise." The pony was engulfed in green fire, and it was slightly blinding. I summoned my bow when the flames subsided, seeing Queen Chrysalis standing before us.

"I thought you died!" I said out loud, remembering to when Nightmare relinquished her hold on the Queen. She had fallen to the ground, unmoving.

"I did not. I was simply knocked out for a few hours while you dealt with Nightmare. I have to thank you for that- I was going to kill her myself, but it seems you did it for me."

"Chrysalis, you have to be a special form of stupid to come here, after what you've done!" Rainbow said.

Twilight summoned her own Keyblade, and added on, "You not only declared war on Equestria, but attacked myself, my friends, and the Princesses!"

"I did no such thing, Twilight." Chrysalis said. "I was under the spells of both Nightmare and that blasted Marluxia. I had no intention to return to Equestria- my hive needs love to survive, but we can acquire it from elsewhere. Besides, I have tried this land once before, and I'm smarter than to try twice."

Celestia walked off her throne, and approached her. "You mean us no harm? Tell me why we can trust you. You even showed up in the guise of one of my guards!"

"That was to get past the other guards. I wanted revenge on Nightmare and Marluxia, but it seems neither is here. Nightmare is apparently dead, as I can tell by the auras in this room, but Marluxia is nowhere to be found. Therefore, I have no further reason to be here."

{You said something about my heart, though. You know where it is?} Xion wrote. She levitated the parchment to Chrysalis's eyes.

"Yes, child. When I mentioned that we had other sources for the love and friendship my kind feeds upon, well, I meant that." I was shocked, and Xion was as well. "We had found a gemstone matching your description of a heart, and it was giving off a powerful aura of love and friendship. My kind is feeding on that energy like a feast."

"You're… You're _eating _Xion's heart?"

"No, only the energy it radiates. And it seems to have an unlimited supply, so my kind thought it as a gift from the heavens above. If it really is a shard of Xion's heart, then we're not too far off, it seems."

I turned to Xion and the princesses. When I turned back to Chrysalis, I knew what to say. "Then I'm sorry, but I'm going to ask that I can receive that gemstone. Xion isn't human without her heart, and I'm trying to fix that."

"I understand. And I will take you to my hive in order to get the stone, but I need something in exchange." She turned to Celestia and Luna.

The older sun princess regarded the Elements of Harmony. "I need the six of you to leave the room. I must discuss this matter only with whom it involves." Rainbow protested, but left the room with the others. "What do you need from us?"

"I want my kind to be able to live here, in Equestria." She said. "My kind needs friendship and love to survive, and I now understand that to get friendship, you must give some first. I will not force the matter, but my kind has every right to live. If our nourishment can't come from the shard of a soul, then allow us to form bonds of our own and live in peace."

Celestia thought hard for a moment. She turned to Luna, and the two talked for several minutes. In the meantime, I approached the Changeling in front of me. "So, Marluxia was controlling you?"

"In a way. His offers of revenge tore at my own soul, and my greed took over. I have never felt truly sorry before, but I am indeed regretting that I let him talk me into this. When Nightmare possessed me, that's when I fully lost control."

"I'm sorry for what happened. It's my fault for not getting Marluxia to die when we last met- if I hadn't let him run, none of this would have happened." I looked up to her. "I'm sorry for causing you this."

"It wasn't your fault, human. It was my own, for falling so neatly into Marluxia's trap." Our heads turned to see Princesses Luna and Celestia approaching us.

Luna started. "We have agreed to let your kind live among us. It is in the offer of friendship between our races."

"Thank you, your highness. It-" Celestia cut off Chrysalis.

"However, no Changelings are permitted within the borders of The Crystal Empire or Ponyville. Princess Cadence is not fond of your kind's actions during her wedding, and Ponyville lies too close to the Everfree Forest- who knows what that will do to your kind."

"Those are limitations I can happily agree with." She turned to me. "I will take Zack here to my hive, where he can retrieve that heart stone as I tell my subjects the joyful news. I will then meet you two here, in Canterlot, so that you may inform the ponies of our agreement."

"It is settled, then. We shall inform the ponies as soon as you depart."

Chrysalis lowered herself. "I may be a queen, but the fastest way to my hive is by air. I will permit you to ride upon my back on the way."

Xion nudged me, obviously worried. "Don't be like that, Xion. I'll be right back. I'm going to get your Heart shard, come back, and we'll live here until Discord finishes our ship." The last bit repeated itself in my head. Well, when the God of Chaos fixes something, you know there's going to be a problem. I don't know gummi engineering, though, so I'll trust him.

{Be careful} Xion wrote, and I hugged her in response. It was a little awkward, her being a unicorn and I being a human, but we managed. I climbed up on Chrysalis's back, just in front of her wings. Her body wasn't furred like I thought it was- she actually had a hard, dull exoskeleton, like a bug.

"Hold on, little human." She said, her wings buzzing to life and picking us up in the air. We flew out of the castle window, and off to the west. "We'll arrive at my hive soon."

~End of Chapter~

Nano: finally, an update to this story. It's been what, a month?

Librom: a little more than that. However, we're reaching the end of this story, so just hold out on the slow updates until then.


	17. The Hive

Chapter 17 ~The Hive~

August 22  
8:43 pm  
North of the Crystal Empire  
Zack

The fighting from the day before had rendered me exhausted. Soon after we left, I had fallen asleep on Chrysalis's back. Now, she roused me from my slumber, and I saw the beauty of Luna's night start to overtake her sister's day. Damn, I haven't been here long and I'm already thinking like the world's inhabitants. It's for the better, I guess- helps me to understand what's going on.

"We are near my hive." Chrysalis stated as she touched down to the ground. "We shall have to walk through the field from here- I do not wish to startle my subjects."

I dismounted the changeling, finding that my left foot had fallen asleep. "That's fine. I could use a walk about now anyway." Chrysalis led me through a rocky valley, one that reminded me more of the bottom of the Grand Canyon back on Earth than the field she called it.

We walked for what seemed like hours, but the moon had not quite risen yet. Finally, I asked, "So, where is your hive?"

Chrysalis chuckled. "We are already in it, Zack. Most changelings are in their caves right now, getting ready to sleep the night away."

"So, where is the heart fragment?"

"Patience, human. You cannot just take it- I must explain to my hive why you are first. And that will have to wait until morning." The Queen finally stopped at a larger cave, and now that I looked inside, saw them to be coated with a green substance. It wasn't slime, as it felt dry, but it unsettled me all the same.

"You may take that cave there." Chrysalis said, pointing a hoof to a smaller opening not far off. "I tend to sleep in, especially after today's events, so feel free to mingle with my hive when you awaken. They already know you are here on friendly terms."

"How so, if I may ask?"

"They saw you walking in with me. And my hive does not distrust my judgment." She simply walked into the cave, and disappeared into the inky blackness. I merely headed into the cave she pointed out. The green substance- which I figured to be a kind of moss- was soft under me as I laid down in the back of the cave. It wasn't a bad pillow, and I was asleep in seconds.

~Transition to morning~

I woke up to a small, insect-like head in my vision. It was a young changeling, standing over me. While Chrysalis had teal-ish eyes, back and wings, this little one had a red set. "Hello there. Good morning to you." I said.

"Wow, you can talk our language!" the changeling said. "When I saw you walking in with Chrysalis, I thought only she could talk to you- like most outsiders. But you can talk!" He seemed a little hyper, but maybe it's normal.

I sat up on the ground. "Might I ask of your name? I'm Zack."

"My name?" The little changeling seemed confused. "Oh, you mean my title! Sorry, but I'm not old enough for that yet. I'm still a hatchling."

"You don't have a name?" I asked him, again just to make sure. "That's odd, well, to me. My species gives names to its… hatchlings when they are born, not at some point in their life." It then came to me as I finished waking up. "Why are you in my cave, anyway? Not that I don't mind, but still."

"I just wanted to see you, newcomer. It's not every day a hatchling like me can see something as different as you." He shuffled a bit. "Maybe I'll just go, then…"

"Wait, little one." I said. "Maybe you can stay with me today? I need someone to walk me around your hive. I don't know what's here or not. But I'll need to call you something. 'Hatchling' would grab the attention of every other one around."

"Well… my friends call me Ruby, since my back and wings look like the gem. We hatchlings came up with our own names for each other- but we don't let the older ones know them."

"Then Ruby, would you like to lead me around your Hive? I have some time until the Queen wakes up. I'd like to know what the hive's like." He eagerly agreed, and led me out of my cave to a small pool of water.

"This is where my friends and I meet up. Then, we do, well… almost anything we want, as long as we don't leave the hive." Ruby said. I took the opportunity to drink some of the crystal-clear water. It was refreshing and sated my thirst. "Uhh… what are you doing, Zack?"

"Drinking. Don't you drink water to survive?" I asked. "My kind needs to take in physical food, like water, to live."

"All I need is a good wave of friendship, or love. That's what my kind feeds on- it sustains us. I've never tried to drink the water, though…" He carefully crouched down, and lapped at it with his small tongue. "It's… different. But not bad."

"Hey! Ruby!" a voice called out. I saw two more changeling hatchlings approach. Apparently the black exoskeleton was common for their kind. The one on the left had teal like Chrysalis, but the other had blue features.

"Cocoon! Lapis!" Ruby said, beckoning them closer. "This is Zack, the outsider Chrysalis brought!" He introduced me, and I knelt down to say hello. The hatchlings were up to my waist in height.

"You're big, mister." Lapis said. She was the blue one, and Cocoon was the other male, who resembled Chrysalis.

"Not for my kind. I'm barely out of my time as a hatchling myself." I said, putting it in terms they would easily understand. "But that doesn't mean I can't play like one. What do you three do to pass the time here?"

"Well, most of the time we play games, like chase, or hide-and-search." Cocoon said. His voice was softer than the others, but not gentle- just in volume.

Ruby added on, "But sometimes we scare the older changelings!" I laughed.

"What's so funny?" Lapis asked.

"Only that you three remind me of some of my friends when I was younger." I stood up. "What was one of those games… Hide-and-search? How about I play that with you?" the three hatchlings all agreed happily, and determined me as the seeker. However, before we could start, I heard Chrysalis's voice boom out across the hive.

"MY CHILDREN, I REQUEST YOU ALL COME TO THE HIGHROCK. THIS INCLUDES THE HATCHLINGS." Her voice was amplified greatly, causing me to cover my ears. Ruby, Cocoon, and Lapis quickly walked towards the "Highrock," and I followed.

"I wonder what's so important that she asked for us to come too." Lapis said.

"I know what it is. And you might like it." That only left the three Hatchlings confused, but I refused to answer their questions. When we gathered at the meeting place, Changelings of all shapes, sizes and colors were gathered around. There must have been three hundred.

"I have gathered you all for a very joyous occasion. The Princesses of Equestria, Luna and Celestia, have agreed to let us live amongst them in their towns, their lands!" This caused the entire hive to burst into loud celebration. That's when it hit me- the hatchlings, the emotion…

The ponies of Equestria refer to a changeling as a monster who feeds on love from others. They refer to them as nothing more than a dark being made to harm. But here, I see families. Mothers hugging their hatchlings. Couples embracing. They were not unlike the ponies in any way, except for appearance and diet.

"However," Chrysalis said. "In order to do so, we must give our treasured jewel, our current source of nourishment, to the human known as Zack. I call that human to my side now." I walked forward, the changelings opening a path for me. Ruby was following me, but I was unsure as to why. I climbed up the slope to where Chrysalis was standing, her eyes and everyone else's on me.

"I will accept this gesture of kindness, and ensure that Princess Celestia keeps to her promise." I said. I didn't know where the words came from, but they reassured the changelings below.

"Then take the gem, Zack." I approached the stone beside her, the shard of Xion's heart glimmering in the sunlight. I pulled the rest of the soul from my bag, and fused the fourth piece together. It belonged on the other side of the second, forming the bottom of the shape of a heart.

"Now, my children, we fly to Equestria! To Canterlot!" Chrysalis shouted, roars of cheer erupting from the crowd below. The Queen turned to me, but her words were lost when a scream erupted from the crowd, one of fear, not celebration. I turned to it, to see a changeling being attacked by a Large Body heartless. Shadows scurried here and there, and immediately I jumped into action, summoning my blades to crash down on a foe.

"RUN!" I shouted, getting the changelings clear of the battle area. Damn my Keyblade- that's the reason these things show up near me at all! Yen-Sid told me that the Heartless fear the Keyblade, and so attack its wielders to destroy them. I slashed one blade down vertically, slicing a shadow in two. In no time at all, only the Large Body was left- or so I thought. Another one had jumped into the fray, and surprised me when I felt its fist connect with my back.

I landed on my feet, sliding to a stop. A small amount of blood welled in my mouth, which I spat on the ground. "Okay, which one of you two wants to be Equestria's Biggest Loser?"

That got their attention. Both of them charged at me, one leading. I jumped out of the way of the first, and blocked the second one's charge. The collision with my blades bounced the fat Heartless into the air, and I rolled underneath it to slice up his backside. He fell into black smoke. "You've been eliminated."

The second one was easier to dispatch- I simply stayed my ground and fired a small fire bolt at him, thanking Twilight in my head for teaching me. It engulfed him in flame, and I was able to run to his back easier to slash across his back. He stumbled forward, and his ashes from the fire dissolved into the black smoke of Heartless. "Congratulations. You win."

After the Heartless were soundly defeated, Ruby was the one to run up to me. "What were those things?" He asked, and I banished my bow. "What was that?"

I grinned. "That? It was just one big fat joke."

~End of Chapter~

Librom: and now we see Ruby enter the situation.

Nano: yeah, but this late in the story, he can't possibly be too important.

Librom: …

Nano: Right?

Librom: …


	18. An Act of Daring

Chapter 18 ~An Act of Daring~

August 23  
9:32 am  
The Skies, north of the Crystal Empire  
Zack

Queen Chrysalis had reassured her people that the Heartless couldn't hurt them under the protection of herself and the Princesses when they arrived in Canterlot. I was on her back in the meantime, chatting with Ruby, Cocoon, and Lapis as we flew.

"So you're still considered a hatchling until you're eighteen years old?" Lapis asked. I nodded.

"Wow, we're only nine, and next year we aren't hatchlings anymore." Ruby said. The concept of the human way of life seemed so foreign to them. Then again, the life in the Hive was vastly different as well. Children rarely knew who their parents were, and were simply adopted by couples who wished to raise hatchlings.

When a hatchling grew to ten years of age, they are considered adults, and are given a name and job by Queen Chrysalis. Ruby wanted to be what was called a "Gatherer." They were the changelings who disguised themselves as other races to collect Love and Friendship for the hive to eat. "I wanted to be that so I could see the world, and so I got to stretch my wings. I want to see as much as I can, and do as much as I can." He said, flipping in mid-air.

"Well, I want to be a nurse." Lapis said. Apparently, they were responsible for watching over eggs that haven't hatched yet, as well as newborn hatchlings.

"What about you, Cocoon?" I asked.

"Warrior." He said. Cocoon didn't talk much- a fact that I found out early on. Ruby explained that a warrior's job is, well, to defend the hive from any outside attackers. I could've gotten that one.

"I wanted to be a writer," I said. "I wanted to write stories, and share my imagination with the world I'm from. However, my Keyblade kind of got in the way. Not that I don't mind, of course." I said.

"And it's a good thing for us it did," Chrysalis said. "Without you, this world would be in a very different predicament." I nodded, and then continued to chat away with the hatchlings. However, something caught my eye, and I saw something made of darkness head straight for the Queen.

"Look out!" I said, grabbing Chrysalis's neck and pulling back. The shift in momentum caused her to stop short, and the arrow of darkness missed her by inches. But it didn't miss Lapis, who spiraled down, screaming.

"Lapis!" Ruby shouted, and dove after her, Cocoon following close.

"Chrysalis, get me down there." I said.

"I need to stay with my people, Zack. I cannot leave them to save one. Ruby will be fine. He is my son, after all, and holds some of my power."

"Ruby is your son? Then why are you just here, flapping your wings while he's in danger?"

"Changelings do not have strong ties with each other like you humans do. I must put the people before one hatchling."

"Then I'll go save their hides." I dropped off of Chrysalis' back, aiming myself towards the ground. "I'll meet you in Canterlot!" I shouted back, casting Aero (another spell learned from Twilight- I should really thank her when I see her again) to slow my descent. That wasn't enough to negate all injury, though, and I'm pretty sure I bruised something as I tumbled down onto the ground.

Sure enough, there were Heartless. And, as expected, they had surrounded the three hatchlings. Or two, as I counted. Ruby was nowhere to be seen, but one Soldier Heartless had red eyes instead of the normal yellow. That one was engaged in combat with the others, attacking other Heartless.

I shot arrows with my bow, eradicating the small force of Soldiers and shadows. I kept my bow, arrow drawn back, as I approached the strange one, the one that fought for us. "What the hell are you?" I asked.

"I thought you'd react like that…" I heard Ruby's voice emanate from the Soldier. Red flames engulfed it for a brief second, to soon replace the Heartless form with that of Ruby's changeling appearance. "I can transform, like any other changeling, but since I'm Chrysalis's son, I can do things that others can't…"

"Like…?" I asked calmly. I was busy looking over Lapis's for, noticing the arrow of darkness a Heartless shot at her- it remained, deeply sunk in her flesh.

"Well… I can change into things other than Equestrians… and I can use some of their abilities when I do." Ruby looked down. "It's not like the others…"

"You're right- you're different, Ruby." I said. "But that doesn't mean you're worse. Now, give me a second…" I gripped the arrow in Lapis's leg, and she winced.

"That hurts!" she cried out.

"It's going to have to come out sooner or later, and I'd rather it sooner. Here, bite on this." I said, holding a stick I found nearby to her mouth. She bit down on it, and I counted. "one… Two…" I didn't say three as I pulled the arrow out, and Lapis cried out in pain. "Cure!" I shouted, sealing the wound with magic. However, that combined with the little I've managed so far was draining- I haven't gotten too much magical stamina built up yet.

"There, the wound's all sealed up now. Can you stand?" I asked Lapis. The blue-eyed hatchling shakily got to her feet, but then collapsed. "No, I guess not." I said, scooping her form up into my arms.

"What are we going to do now?" Ruby asked.

Cocoon answered, pointing a leg in the distance. "Crystal Empire." First time I've heard him use more than one word at a time. "Quickly." He started to gallop in that direction, and Ruby and I gave chase.

I soon saw the Crystal Empire itself- it was surrounded by a sea of snow. Walking through that was almost hell- what made it so was the swarms of Heartless. Every mile or so, another horde attacked. Soon, I was tired and drained from the conflicts. A soldier hovered over me, preparing to strike. I couldn't turn my bow around quickly enough.

"HYAAA!" I heard. Turns out I didn't have to. A gold-coated mare had jumped in to kick the soldier away, as I dealt with a neoshadow. The mare pulled out a whip, and trapped its legs together, enabling me a clear shot at the beast's head.

"Thanks, stranger." I said. "I'm Zack. The changelings here are Ruby, Cocoon, and Lapis. Might I ask yours?"

The mare shook her grayscale mane, concealed beneath a pith helmet. "The name's Do. Daring Do." She skeptically looked at the three hatchlings behind me, and curiously looked as I picked up Lapis. "What might you be doing with those creatures?"

"These changelings are my friends," I said. "And Lapis here needs medical help; my magic can only do so much. We're headed to the Crystal Empire to get that help."

Daring Do laughed. "You expect to actually get help for her there? Not only do most ponies scream at the sight of a changeling, but Princess Cadence of that very city has ordered kill on sight for all changelings, after a little mishap with her wedding."

"Glad we ran into you, then." I said. "You have any idea where I can find a healer for her, then?"

"Luckily for you, I have some herbs on me that could do the trick." She reached into a vest she wore, and pulled out several small flowers. Using her front hooves, she ground them up and rubbed the mixture on Lapis's leg. "That should help her heal it, just keep her off that leg for a day or two."

"Thank you, Daring. Just one more question."

"Yeah?"

"Do you have a map?"

~Days Later~

Avoiding the Crystal Empire (and a treacherous place called the Fire Swamp, in which Daring Do disappeared into) took a long while. Lapis regained her ability to walk, and I escorted the three hatchlings to the gates of Canterlot. What we found there was rather surprising. The ponies had not reacted poorly to the changelings at all- in fact, it seemed that the two races got along really well with each other.

"Where do we go now?" Ruby asked.

"The palace." I responded. We headed up the marble staircase. I thought that the place was different somehow. But nothing could have prepared me for what I found inside.

~End of Chapter~

Nano: Almost to the end now…

Librom: Yep.. kind of boggles your mind, right?

Nano: nope. *Accidentally drops Librom*

Librom: Hey! Try not to dirty up my cover! It's what we books have for a face!

Nano: uhh… sorry? *picks up Librom*

Librom: then again, my cover IS a face…


	19. Farewell

Chapter 19 ~Farewell~

August 29  
11:23 am  
Canterlot Castle  
Xion

The Throne room was in chaos. Literally, since the god of such was helping Pinkie Pie throw a party for the changelings. Discord rained down colorful confetti everywhere, while he enchanted the food trays to serve the guests themselves. Rainbow Dash had angered a jelly mold, and wound up inside a large amount of the dessert.

I was relieved when Zack walked in, flanked by three changelings. It was a couple of days since he left, and when Chrysalis returned without him, you could understand my worry. In the meantime, I was helping to teach Twilight how to use her Keyblade, under her request. It was difficult, teaching without the ability to speak, but the purple unicorn was a quick learner and I a patient teacher.

"What in the hay happened here?" Zack exclaimed, obviously not expecting _anything _like the chaos in the throne room. Oh yeah, our gummi ship was also fixed by the god of chaos, who apparently knew a thing or two about space travel. It was placed in the castle courtyard- how Zack missed it on the way in is a mystery to me.

{Discord fixed our ship, and he and Pinkie are throwing a party to welcome the changelings.} I filled him in when he approached. He nodded, and looked in worry.

"I'm surprised that a party like this hasn't burnt down the castle." He joked, when Twilight walked up to us.

"It's good to see you're safe, Zack," she began, "But who are the three with you?"

The changeling with the red coloration spoke up. "I'm Ruby, and these are my friends Cocoon," he pointed to the teal one, "And Lapis." He finished, pointing to the blue one.

"It's so exciting to be here, with all of you!" Lapis exclaimed. "I know that we can get along well!"

"Pleasure." Cocoon said.

Other than Zack's interruption by greeting the princesses and Queen Chrysalis, the party resumed its chaotic nature. Zack obviously was not prepared for this, and I could tell he was not a party person, as he soon exited the room saying he "needs some fresh air." Applejack and myself had successfully freed Rainbow from her jelly prison, and the pegasus left to wash out her fur.

Ruby had walked up to me as I stood near the edge of the party. "Hello, I didn't get your name when I came in. I'm Ruby, like before."

{My name is Xion.} I wrote, holding up the parchment for him to see.

"Zee-own? That's a weird name. uhh, I mean, it's good, but…"

{She-on, Ruby. That's my name. and it's no trouble at all.} I smiled as he read it.

"Oh, sorry, Xion. I just wanted to know- why can't you talk? You've been writing down n that parchment all day."

{I can't talk because… well…} I wasn't sure myself. I know it has something to do with the loss of my heart, but other nobodies can speak. That's when it happened- another flash, like before in the Crystal Empire. My eyes shut, and I heard Ruby screaming my name as I fell.

_I was standing in a small alley, with only one way in. I had my back to Roxas, my dearest friend. If I could call him that- Nobodies couldn't have friends, I reminded myself. I turned around, and threw down the hood to my Organization XIII robe. "Xion? You're the mysterious figure?"_

_ "If you could call me that, then do so." I said. "I'm not going back, Roxas. I just can't."_

_ "C'mon, Xion!" He walked forward. "Please come back to us. I know Sa__ï__x will let you in no problem if you just come with us."_

_ I backed up. "You don't understand, Roxas. I just can't go back, not after what I've learned…"_

_ "But Xion-" I had enough. My Keyblade was in my hand, pointed at Roxas's head. "What..?"_

_ "I told you. I'm not going back."_

_ "At least not willingly, I see." I heard another voice say. I turned to the entry to the alley, and saw Axel, my other friend, standing there. "I'm sorry, Xion, but our orders were to capture the mysterious figure we've seen. Conscious or not, you're coming with us." He threw his hands to his sides, and summoned his chakrams._

_ The fight started. Axel and I were close to each other, hitting each other's attacks blow for blow. Roxas was standing on the sidelines, and watched in horror as his best friends were fighting- possibly to the death. I swung down, clipping Axel's jacket, but Roxas stepped forward. "ENOUGH!" he yelled._

_ It was enough to stop me. I hesitated, and looked into his blue eyes. They told me of his sadness, his loneliness after I left. However, a hand hit the back of my neck, and my memory faded where I blacked out in that time._

I opened my eyes to see most of the party stopped. Everyone was over me, worried. "Are you okay, Xion?" I heard. It was Zack, hovering over me with worry in his eyes.

I nodded, and shakily got to my hooves. "Are you sure you're okay, darling?" Rarity asked. "You were shaking after you blacked out, like a horrid dream was eating away at you."

I grabbed my parchment and quill, and wrote, {It happened before. Nothing much, just a few memories surfacing.} Everyone still seemed worried, but after reassuring them I would be alright, the party resumed.

I thought to myself why this was happening. I had a new memory surge whenever Zack had found or was close to finding another shard of my heart. At Beast's Castle, I had remembered I was Part of Organization XIII- a week before my first shard was found, unknown to us at the time for what it was.

My second shard was found at the World that Never Was. It gave me my memories of my Keyblade, and what exactly it does- capture hearts for the Organization. It also made me remember that I was made, not born- an experiment done by Vexen of the Organization. That happened on Earth, a few hours after Zack found it.

The third shard sparked the memory of Roxas and I on the tower. That was a full week after Zack found the shard. The fourth one made this memory appear- only three days after Zack found the shard in the Hive. The more shards we found, the more memories returned to me. I also felt shades of emotion from time to time. Not full emotions like humans, but it was a different sensation than normal.

It got late, and Zack announced that we would be leaving soon. Everyone begged us to stay, but he responded with: "Other worlds need Xion and I's help. And besides, while there are only a few Heartless still on your world, I think I'm leaving this place in capable hand- er, hooves." He said, gesturing towards Twilight.

We boarded the Gummi Ship, waving goodbye to all our new friends. Zack sat at the captain's chair, and initiated takeoff. We soared up, through the clouds, and out into space. I reverted to my human form, and sat in the chair nearby.

"So, four shards down, and if I'm guessing right from the size of these things, three to go." Zack said. "Who knows what's on the next world? Talking foxes or bunnies?"

I laughed a little. Strange, I never did that before- it wasn't the fake laughter of Nobodies. I could tell this was the real thing, as it was audible. The first vocal sound I've made since I ran into Zack. "See, Xion? That shards are giving you your emotions back already! Soon you'll be talking like everyone else, too."

A crash was heard in the back of the ship, in the sleeping bunks. Discord had added more there, using spare supplies from Ponyville. "Wait here, Xion. I'll see what's up." Zack hit autopilot, and walked back to the room.

It wasn't long until I heard him scream a familiar name. "RUBY?!"

~End of Chapter~

Nano: I see someone isn't where they are supposed to be.

Librom: that is correct. Now that this story is over-

Nano: Hang on, there's one more chapter.

Librom: what? There shouldn't be. I am this journal.

Nano: it's right here. "Chapter 20: -"

Librom: Don't say the name!

Nano: why?

Librom: because I need you to erase this stupid moustache on my face.


	20. Onward - Hollow Key

Chapter 20 ~Onward~

September 2  
2:45 pm  
The Falcon  
Zack

I was shocked, to say the least. Ruby was bunked out under a bed, cowering, hiding. "What are you doing here?" I asked him.

"I wanted to come with you…" he said.

"What would possess you to just sneak aboard my ship? What about your mother- does Chrysalis even know?" I asked.

"Y-Yes, she does. I asked her if I could go with you… I wanted to see the world, but… why do that when I could go with you and see so many more worlds?"

His intentions were innocent enough. But, this can't happen. "Ruby, I'll have to take you back. I can't just take you with me."

"Please! I'll be good, I'll do anything if you let me stay!" It was at this point that Xion entered, and she gasped silently.

"We can't, Ruby. It's just not with the laws of space travel- I can't just let you tag along. Besides, what were you going to do for food? You eat _friendship and love._ We don't exactly have that canned."

"I was going to eat the energy given off from the jewel you took… I can feel it now, so I was feeding off that." He looked up at me with big, watery eyes. "Please?"

I turned to Xion. "What do you think? Should we take him back?" I asked her.

She wrote down something, then handed it to me. {I think we should let him come with us. He wants to see the world, Chrysalis is okay with it, and his food is cheap. Besides, I can't follow you by dream drop to a world's surface- only a being with a heart can do that. Ruby counts, and could help you while he explores.}

I turned to Ruby with a smile. "Well, then that's that."

"What?" Ruby asked me.

"If you wanted to come along, all you had to do was ask." I grinned wider. "Xion and I both will enjoy your company."

"I can come along?" He asked, to make sure.

I got up, and walked back to the cockpit. "Yes, my friend. Now, let's get on course for the next world." I said, setting the autopilot for the next shard in my magical radar's range. I slammed the button down, and we headed for our next adventure…

Chapter 20.5 ~Hollow Key~

September 2  
Unknown Time  
Where Nothing Gathers  
Marluxia

"Damn you!" I screamed out. Even though I wasn't angry, I couldn't be, I was still frustrated at my loss. Damn that Zack and Xion, damn them both to hell for ruining my plans once again.

"Are you alright, Marluxia?" I heard Morxar say. I looked up to see him laying in his throne across from mine in the room, slightly worried.

"Yes, I'm fine. I just need to find another world to corrupt. We need the hearts from their world to complete Kingdom Hearts, and become whole once more."

"I know. I shall be going, then. You gave me an assignment last night. I will not fail you." He vanished in a column of darkness. I sighed.

"What can I do to stop this nonsense?" I asked myself. I looked around, at the thrones of my fallen comrades- Larxene, Xigbar, Xemnas… the list included twelve of them. No, eleven- Roxas wasn't dead, he was one with Sora. And as much as Xion thought she wasn't a member anymore, well, she still had use for me. And thus, I counted her as such.

Morxar had taken up Xaldin's throne, and I Xemnas's. I was now the effective leader of the Organization, so I thought it was fitting. However, my thoughts kept drifting to that blasted Key-bearer. I needed a way to get to him… but my mind was elsewhere.

"Perhaps a brief rest in the Realm of Darkness could clear my mind." I told myself. I summoned a dark portal, and I found myself away from the off-white thrones of Where Nothing Gathers to the soft, moonlit beaches of the Dark Realm.

I stayed there. I'm not sure for how long. The calm water's edge did clear my head a little- I was back on my next target. A small, relatively peaceful world, but one with a dark aura around it, an air of misfortune. I liked that world- it would soon be nothing but darkness, but one could enjoy it before that happened.

That's when I heard it. A sound. A voice. "Where… am I..?" I heard. I turned around, my hood up, to see an equestrian figure. Zack's figure, I remember it all too well. "Who are… you..?"

Of course. He wouldn't know it was me. Zack separated a body from him to get Nightmare's influence off him. This was a Nobody in his image. A grin broke out on my face.

"I am all there is. Or maybe, all there ever was." I said. The same words I said to Morxar, and the same that Xemnas said to me. "I can give you purpose, I can give you identity. All you have to do is trust me."

To my excitement, he nodded. I called upon my powers- those of darkness and plant life- to not only confirm him as a member of the Organization, but to revert him to a human form. He mostly looked like the real Zack, but had bright, blonde hair down to his shoulders and dull, black eyes. Letters formed around him, the past name mixed with an "X."

"Axcharzy…" He muttered, reading the name in front of him.

"That is right, the new you." I placed a hand on him, a coat of darkness forming around him. It turned into the Organization's coat. "Welcome, number XVI."

~End of Story~


End file.
